President Ma Ying-jeou met on the afternoon of March 1 with Sir Suma Chakrabarti, the president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). On behalf of the government and people of the ROC, the president extended a warm welcome to President Chakrabarti and the officials accompanying him, and also expressed his desire to see further expansion of Taiwan's cooperative relationship with the European Union (EU) and the EBRD.
In remarks, the president noted that the EBRD, since its founding in 1991, has consistently maintained a strong cooperative relationship with Taiwan, and the fact that President Chakrabarti is now leading a delegation to Taiwan just half a year after becoming the head of the bank demonstrates that the EBRD places great importance on its ties with Taiwan.
President Ma stated that the ROC and the EBRD cooperate in providing technical assistance to recipient nations in Central and Eastern Europe, and Central Asia. Besides making the best use of the EBRD, this cooperation helps to provide Taiwan businesses with opportunities to put its strengths to good use in the fields of information and communication technology, photovoltaics, and mass transit systems, he said, adding that the collaborative relationship is an ideal one. The president noted that President Chakrabarti's visit coincides with a trip to Taiwan by a fact-finding delegation associated with the construction of the "New Silk Road" through Kazakhstan. If this freeway project is successfully implemented, it will create a win-win situation for all parties, including Taiwan, the EBRD, and Kazakhstan, he said.
In discussing the advancement of relations between Taiwan and the EU in recent years, the president stated that the EU is Taiwan's largest source of foreign investment. At present, EU members have invested over US$30 billion in Taiwan, which is equivalent to roughly one-third of total foreign investment in Taiwan, he said. President Ma pointed out that the number of ROC nationals visiting the EU has increased about 40% since the EU granted visa-free courtesies to visitors from Taiwan two years ago. In the wake of this step, substantial growth has been seen in bilateral trade and interaction in other areas, he said. The president also expressed his hopes for a further expansion of cooperative relations between the ROC, the EU, and the EBRD.
President Ma also mentioned that the European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan (formerly European Chamber of Commerce Taipei) just two days ago held a reception to celebrate the 25th anniversary of its founding, which shows that the relationship between the ROC and the EU continues to move forward, he said.
The president emphasized that the ROC participates in the Asian Development Bank in Asia, the Central American Bank for Economic Integration in Central America, and the EBRD in Europe. He said he hopes that the ROC's cooperation in this regard highlights its commitment to serving as a peacemaker, a provider of humanitarian aid, and a creator of new technologies and business opportunities in the international community.
The delegation led by EBRD President Chakrabarti included Director Christoph Denk of the EBRD President's Office, and Senior Manager Junko Aya of EBRD's Official Co-financing Unit. They met with President Ma at the Presidential Office in the afternoon. Also attending the meeting were Secretary-General to the President Timothy Chin-Tien Yang (楊進添), National Security Council Advisor Francis Yi-Hua Kan (甘逸驊), and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Vanessa Yea-Ping Shih (史亞平).