President Ma Ying-jeou on the afternoon of October 7 met with the participants in a training course organized by the Ministry of National Defense for officials from friends and allies in Latin America and the Caribbean. During the meeting with the participants and their families, the president reiterated the government's three lines of defense for Taiwan, namely institutionalizing the cross-strait rapprochement, enhancing Taiwan’s contributions to international development and aligning defense with diplomacy. This, he said, will help ensure the ROC's security.
The president stated that the ROC deeply desires to play the roles of a peacemaker and a provider of humanitarian aid in the international community. Pointing to last year's earthquake in Haiti as an example, the president noted that the ROC not only immediately dispatched a disaster rescue team to Haiti to aid in the rescue effort, but also has helped in the reconstruction of that nation through the building of permanent housing, the adoption of orphans in disaster areas, and providing public health and vocational training. In the same light, the president mentioned the ROC's response to the Great East Japan Earthquake in March of this year. The ROC embraces a spirit of providing every assistance possible when its friends are in need, he said. The government first announced that it was donating NT$100 million to the rescue effort, following which the private sector also generously donated funds. In all, Taiwan donated NT$6.6 billion to Japan in the wake of the quake, making Taiwan the biggest donor in the world in financial assistance to Japan after the disaster, he remarked.
President Ma also mentioned that since taking office in May 2008 he has worked to gradually improve ties between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan and mainland China have signed 15 agreements, helping to reduce tensions in the Taiwan Strait and promoting regional peace. Meanwhile, he reiterated that, in an effort to ensure Taiwan's security, the government will continue to promote the three lines of defense for Taiwan—institutionalizing the cross-strait rapprochement, enhancing Taiwan’s contributions to international development and aligning defense with diplomacy.
The president also expressed his deepest appreciation to the ROC's friends and allies for speaking on behalf of Taiwan in international venues and supporting Taiwan's participation in the World Health Assembly and its applications to enter the International Civil Aviation Organization and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. President Ma also said that at the same time Taiwan seeks to further solidify its alliances with its diplomatic allies, it also desires to enhance its substantive relations with countries with which it does not maintain diplomatic ties, thereby increasing room for Taiwan to participate in the international community.
The delegation, which included high-ranking officials and their families from the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Paraguay, was accompanied to the Presidential Office by Minister of National Defense Kao Hua-chu (高華柱) and Chief of the General Staff General Lin Jan-yi (林鎮夷) to meet President Ma. Also attending the meeting was National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Ko Kuang-yueh (葛光越).