During a meeting on the morning of October 11 with Republic of the Marshall Islands President Christopher J. Loeak and Mrs. Loeak, President Ma Ying-jeou, on behalf of the government and people of the ROC, expressed a cordial welcome to the delegation from the Marshall Islands led by President Loeak that is attending the celebratory activities associated with the ROC's 2012 Double Tenth National Day.
In remarks, the president noted that the ROC and the Marshall Islands established formal diplomatic ties in November 1998 and have had a solid alliance since. President Loeak has visited Taiwan four times and his nation is a staunch ally of the ROC, President Ma said. He noted that the two nations maintain cooperation projects in a wide range of fields, including farming, fisheries, education, culture, health, hygiene, clean energy, infrastructure, and vocational training, and these projects have yielded significant benefits. This visit to Taiwan by President Loeak, he said, will further enhance bilateral understanding and boost the cooperative relationship and interaction between the two nations.
President Ma stated that his counterpart visited Taiwan earlier this year to attend his inauguration ceremonies on May 20. President Ma said he learned that President Loeak has placed great emphasis on his nation's education system and infrastructure for its outlying islands, and wants to become his nation's "education president." President Ma remarked that President Loeak strongly believes in education as a vital path to a higher quality of life for the people of the Marshall Islands. The president added that presently the ROC is providing Taiwan Scholarships to assist in the training of talent from the Marshall Islands. To this same end, Taiwan's International Cooperation and Development Fund is also providing scholarships, as well as arranging vocational training cooperation and other short-term workshops. At the same time, the ROC and the United States are cooperating in promoting the "Pacific Island Leadership Partnership with Taiwan," with the hope of training over the next five years 125 individuals from Pacific island nations with leadership potential, thereby creating high-level human resources for the region.
President Ma stated that during the General Debate of the 67th session of the United Nations General Assembly, President Loeak spoke on behalf of the ROC, supporting meaningful participation for Taiwan in the International Civil Aviation Organization, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and other international organizations and treaties. President Loeak, he said, also expressed support for his East China Sea Peace Initiative, the shelving of disputes in the East China Sea, the joint development of resources, and the rational and peaceful handling of controversies in the area. President Ma expressed his appreciation to President Loeak for his support in this regard. President Ma also expressed his hope that the two countries, in the spirit of mutual benefit, will continue to strengthen the bilateral substantive cooperative relationship, achieving a vision of co-prosperity.
Besides President and Mrs. Loeak, the delegation included Minister of Foreign Affairs Phillip H. Muller and Mrs. Muller, Council of Iroij Representative Iroij Heltera Hermios, Majuro City Mayor Mudge Samuel , Majuro City Councilman Jisam Kaisha, and Majuro City Government Health Education and Social Affairs Division Director Melvin Majmeto, and Marshall Islands Ambassador to the ROC Phillip K. Kabua and Mrs. Kabua. The delegation was accompanied to the Presidential Office in the morning by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tung Kuoyu (董國猷), and ROC Ambassador to the Marshall Islands George T. K. Li (李自剛) to meet President Ma. Also attending the meeting were Secretary-General to the President Timothy Chin-tien Yang (楊進添) and National Security Council Secretary-General Jason C. Yuan (袁健生).