Office of the President Republic of China(Taiwan)

President Ma Ying-jeou met on the morning of January 15 with former Ambassador of the Republic of Paraguay to the Republic of China Carlos Martinez Ruiz Diaz. The president thanked and praised Ambassador Martinez for the contributions he made during his tenure in Taiwan in actively promoting a wide array of interaction between the two countries. President Ma also expressed his hopes that Ambassador Martinez will continue working to promote friendly relations between the two countries after he returns to Paraguay.

In remarks, the president stated that Ambassador Martinez assumed his position in Taipei in January 2010 and left Taiwan upon the completion of his tenure in June 2012. During the course of his two-year posting, he chalked up many achievements in his efforts to strengthen bilateral interaction and cooperation, the president said, adding that Ambassador Martinez was also bestowed with the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon in recognition of his work. President Ma commented that Ambassador Martinez carried out his work with enthusiasm, and his friendly nature made him quite popular within the foreign diplomatic corps here.

President Ma stated that Ambassador Martinez previously served in the Paraguayan Congress, and during his posting in Taiwan helped to serve as a bridge for communications in the area of political and economic ties between both sides. In addition, he assisted in simplifying the visa procedures and application times required for ROC nationals traveling to his nation, the president said, furthermore noting that Paraguay began providing landing visas to ROC nationals as of November 20, 2012. This marked an important step forward in relations between the two countries, the president remarked.

President Ma mentioned that the Republic of Paraguay is the ROC's most important diplomatic ally in South America, and was the first nation he visited after taking office in 2008. Of the ROC's 23 diplomatic allies, Paraguay is the largest in terms of land mass and is also the furthest away from the ROC. Diplomatic relations between the ROC and Paraguay have spanned over half a century, and ties have consistently been close and friendly, the president stated. President Ma expressed his hopes that Ambassador Martinez will continue to promote friendly bilateral relations after he returns home.

Ambassador Martinez was accompanied to the Presidential Office by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Simon Shen-Yeaw Ko (柯森耀) 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).