President Ma Ying-jeou met with Corinne De Permentier, Vice-President of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives, at the Presidential Office on the morning of November 23. The president welcomed her and the delegation she is leading to Taiwan, and expressed his desire to see relations between Taiwan and Belgium move forward.
President Ma remarked that Belgium has long been a major cultural center, and that its capital Brussels is the home of the European Union (EU) headquarters. Located not far from Brussels is the city of Bruges, which was designated as the cultural capital of Europe in 2002. The president visited Bruges in 1992, and last traveled to Belgium in 2006.
President Ma commented that Belgium and Taiwan are comparable in terms of land area and population, both adhere to the core values of freedom and democracy, and both are peace-loving countries. Belgium is chairing the six-month rotating EU presidency in the second half of this year, and has made every effort to allow visitors from Taiwan to travel in the Schengen Area without a visa. Formal passage of the measure could come this week. The president expressed his deepest appreciation for this, and said he hopes that this development will increase travel by Taiwanese to Belgium and EU nations, thereby further promoting bilateral relations.
The president pointed out that over the past two-and-a-half years since his inauguration, he has worked actively to improve cross-strait relations and reduce tension in the Taiwan Strait. He said that efforts have been made to place trade and economic relations between Taiwan and mainland China on a systematic footing, and even more important is that Taiwan has become a global center for innovation and an economic and trading hub in the Asia-Pacific region. In particular, the government has engineered a cut in the business tax from 25% to 17%, and the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have signed the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement, which has helped to facilitate cross-strait trade, he said, adding that he hopes more European firms will invest in Taiwan and establish strategic alliances with their Taiwan counterparts to jointly develop markets in East Asia.
President Ma remarked that EU nations are the most popular destination for Taiwan investors, and the government hopes to forge strengthened trade and economic ties with Belgium and other EU countries. He pointed to the UK as an example, saying that the number of Taiwanese visiting the UK increased by 30% after the UK last year granted visa-free treatment to travelers from Taiwan. The measure has also led to strong growth in trade between the two countries, he said, adding that the people of Taiwan enjoy European culture and have strong purchasing power. Once the EU includes Taiwan in its visa-waiver program, he expects a significant rise in interaction between the two sides.
Furthermore, the president urged Belgium and other EU nations to support Taiwan's efforts to participate in the International Civil Aviation Organization and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Vice-President De Permentier and the other Chamber delegates (Gerald Kindermans, Jacqueline Galant, Jan Van Esbroeck, and Olivier Henry), were accompanied to the Presidential Office in the morning by Deputy Foreign Minister Lyushun Shen to meet President Ma. Also attending the meeting was National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Chih-kung Liu.