President Ma Ying-jeou met on the afternoon of December 19 with Jose Ignacio Salafranca Sanchez-Neyra, the European People's Party coordinator in the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs. In addition to extending a welcome to Parliamentarian Salafranca and his delegation on behalf of the government and people of the ROC, the president also expressed his hope for a breakthrough in trade and economic cooperation between Taiwan and the European Union with the signing of an economic cooperation agreement.
In remarks, the president first expressed his congratulations to and admiration of the European Union (EU) on winning the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize. President Ma commented that the origins of the EU can be traced back over 60 years to the founding of the European Coal and Steel Community. This grouping began as a customs union and expanded to a common market and monetary union before becoming the EU of today, he said. The cooperation in this process helped to overcome centuries of enmity within Europe and enabled the region to achieve peace, he noted, which has indeed made the EU worthy of an award recognizing efforts to foster peace. President Ma stated that he has promoted the development of cross-strait relations since taking office, adding that the inspiration for many related policies came from European integration.
The president mentioned that Mr. Salafranca last visited Taiwan in 1994 and that the political situation in Taiwan and the cross-strait relationship have seen considerable changes over the past two decades. At the same time, the president noted, since being elected to the European Parliament in 1994, Mr. Salafranca has won re-election three times. Over this period, the president said, Mr. Salafranca has voiced strong support for Taiwan in the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy annual report, which included resolutions friendly to Taiwan, Taiwan's participation in the international community, and the promotion of an economic cooperation agreement between the EU and Taiwan. President Ma said that the government and people of the ROC appreciate these gestures.
President Ma remarked that the EU granted ROC nationals visa-free courtesies as of January 11 last year to countries party to the Schengen Agreement. As of the present, he said, a total of 131 jurisdictions offer visa-free treatment or landing visas to ROC nationals, which constitutes an unprecedented level of visa courtesies for the people of the ROC. In addition, many members of the European Parliament last year jointly extended their congratulations to the ROC last year on its centenary, for which the president also expressed his gratitude.
With respect to the recent sovereignty dispute over the Diaoyutai Islets, which has triggered tension in the East China Sea, President Ma stressed that the inspiration for his East China Sea Peace Initiative came from the example of Europe's cooperation in developing the North Sea oil field. He expressed his appreciation to Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, for her public statement on September 25 of this year expressing support for peaceful solutions to international disputes. In addition, the president stated, Chairman of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs Elmar Brok, Vice Chairwoman of the EU-Taiwan Friendship Group Laima Andrikiene, and Parliamentarian Eduard Kukan have all issued press releases supporting the initiative, which have helped the people of Europe to understand the content of the initiative.
The president stated that the EU is Taiwan's fourth largest trading partner and its largest source of foreign investment. Meanwhile, Taiwan is the EU's sixth largest trading partner in Asia, he said. Bilateral trade last year reached US$52.6 billion, up 8% from 2010, the president noted. Even though trade this year is down from last year, the president expressed his confidence that trade will return to previous levels next year.
President Ma stressed that two years ago Taiwan and mainland China signed the Cross-Straits Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement, and last year Taiwan and Japan signed the Taiwan-Japan Bilateral Investment Arrangement. Presently, Taiwan is preparing to resume negotiations with the United States under the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement, he said. In light of these developments, the president remarked, Taiwan and the EU, its fourth largest trading partner, should work for breakthroughs in economic and trade cooperation. He furthermore stated that the two sides should engage in even closer cooperative relations, including the signing of an economic cooperation agreement.
The visiting delegation was accompanied to the Presidential Office by Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Vanessa Yea-Ping Shih (史亞平) 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 Advisor Francis Yi-Hua Kan (甘逸驊).