President Ma Ying-jeou met on the morning of January 13 with a delegation led by Republic of Paraguay Chamber of Senators President and Congressional President Julio Cesar Velazquez Tilleria and Mrs. Velazquez. In addition to welcoming the group to Taiwan, the president also called for continued advancement in cooperation and interaction between the two countries.
In remarks, President Ma stated that Chamber of Senators President Velazquez worked as a pediatrician prior to his election in 2001 as mayor of Fernando de la Mora, a suburb of the Paraguayan capital of Asuncion. In 2003, then-president Oscar Nicanor Duarte Frutos appointed Mr. Velazquez as Paraguay's minister of health, and it was during that time that he strongly supported observer status for Taiwan at the World Health Assembly. In addition, Mr. Velazquez has been elected to the Chamber of Senators twice since 2008 and is now the president of the National Congress with his outstanding reputation.
President Ma remarked that the ROC and Paraguay established diplomatic relations in 1957, and Paraguay is the ROC's sole diplomatic partner in South America. Among the ROC's diplomatic allies, Paraguay is the largest in terms of land area, and the most distant from Taiwan. The president stated that he led a delegation to Paraguay in August of last year to attend the inauguration of President Horacio Cartes, and while there he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Universidad Nacional de Asuncion. President Ma commented that bilateral relations are extremely close.
The president also stated that the Chamber of Senators resolved on December 12 to establish an ROC friendship committee, the only such committee to be established by the Chamber of Senators since the chamber convened on July 1 last year. The president said he hopes the committee will continue to exercise its influence in the chamber and take substantive action to support meaningful participation for Taiwan in international organizations and activities.
President Ma also mentioned that President Cartes, in an address delivered during the General Debate at the United Nations General Assembly on September 24 last year, spoke on behalf of Taiwan, which the government and people of the ROC will always remember. He further expressed hope that the delegation will gain a more comprehensive understanding of the state of Taiwan's economy, trade, education, and agriculture during this visit. President Ma said he would like to see a continued strengthening of bilateral interaction and cooperation in the fields of energy, medicine, and law, which would deepen the alliance between the two countries.