President Ma Ying-jeou met on the morning of February 13 with a delegation from the National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR), an American think tank. In addition to extending a cordial welcome to the visitors on their trip to Taiwan, he also expressed his hope for continued expansion of interaction and cooperation between Taiwan and the United States in a variety of areas.
In remarks, the president stated that the NBR is an important think tank that carries out specific research on strategic, political, and other issues impacting US relations with Asia. In the 25 years since its establishment, he said, the organization has accumulated a considerable number of achievements in its research. President Ma pointed out that this delegation is being led by retired US Navy admiral Robert Willard, who used to serve as the Commander of the US Pacific Command, the US Pacific Fleet, the USS Kitty Hawk, and the US Seventh Fleet in Yokosuka, Japan. Admiral Willard, the president added, has notable expertise with respect to the strategic situation in the Asia-Pacific.
President Ma also remarked that US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel on February 5 of this year at a hearing of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs mentioned that the East China Sea Peace Initiative unveiled by Taiwan two years ago is in sync with America's respect for international law and the central strategy of using peaceful means to resolve disputes. Assistant Secretary Russel also recognized the dialogue held between Taiwan and the Philippines last year, with these prudent discussions helping to resolve a dispute between the two sides and avoiding an escalation of tensions, the president said.
With respect to the development of relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, President Ma commented that over the past five years, the two sides have signed 19 agreements, including ones that have opened Taiwan's doors to tourists from mainland China and created a framework for direct charter flights between the two sides. He pointed out that at present, over 100 daily scheduled flights ply routes between the two sides. In addition, the number of mainland China students studying in Taiwan has risen from 823 prior to his taking office in 2008 to over 24,000 at present, marking a 30 fold increase, he said. The president also noted that of the eight million tourist arrivals in Taiwan last year, 37% were mainland Chinese, which was a new high and has brought some NT$370 billion in foreign exchange receipts to Taiwan. Meanwhile, the president mentioned, Taiwan and mainland China have cooperated in arresting over 5,000 criminals since the signing of the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement. At the same time, Minister of the Executive Yuan's Mainland Affairs Council Wang Yu-Chi (王郁琦) is currently on a visit to the other side, marking the first time that the head of the ROC's agency responsible for mainland affairs has set foot in mainland China, he said. During this trip, Minister Wang met with his counterpart, mainland China's Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council Minister Zhang Zhijun (張志軍), and the two exchanged opinions on cross-strait relations, he stated. This, the president said, marked the first time in 65 years since the two sides of the Taiwan Strait came under the rule of different governments that such a meeting was held, thus becoming an important milestone in the development of peace and prosperity between the two sides.
As for ROC-US relations, President Ma remarked, bilateral ties are now at their best state since diplomatic relations were severed between the two 30 years ago. Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and standing Secretary of State John Kerry have both publicly recognized the importance of the relationship between the United States and Taiwan, he said. For instance, the president pointed out, former Secretary Clinton specially emphasized that Taiwan is an important security and economic partner of the United States. Moreover, the president added, he spoke over the phone with former Secretary Clinton when he made a transit stop in Los Angeles, California last month on his return from a trip to several of the ROC's allies. During that call, the former secretary reiterated the importance to the United States of the friendship between the two sides, he said.
President Ma further stated that over the past five years, Taiwan has purchased some US$18.3 billion of defensive weapons from the United States, adding that the P-3C Orion anti-submarine and maritime surveillance aircrafts, as well as the AH-64E Apache helicopters have began to be delivered from last year. He also pointed out that Taiwan formally entered the US Visa Waiver Program in November 2012, becoming the 37th country in the program and the only one with which the United States does not maintain formal diplomatic relations. The development has been good news to the 460,000 ROC nationals visiting the United States annually, and is helping to promote even closer dealings between the two sides, he said.
President Ma then turned the topic to bilateral economic and trade relations. He mentioned that Taiwan and the United States in March of last year resumed negotiations under the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement, adding that he hopes the two sides will be able to sign a bilateral investment arrangement in the future. In November of the same year, he said, former Vice President Vincent C. Siew (蕭萬長) led a delegation of business leaders from Taiwan to the United States. During the visit, the delegation expressed its willingness to support the SelectUSA investment initiative being carried out by the United States, he remarked, also pointing out that concrete results have already been seen in this regard.
President Ma explained to the visitors that this year will be a breakout year for Taiwan's economy, as well as a year in which the economy will sprint forward. He mentioned that Taiwan will continue to create the conditions needed to enter the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which will help Taiwan from being marginalized amid the trend toward regional economic integration.
The president also addressed Taiwan's volunteer army system—a topic of particular interest to the visitors. He stressed that the government at present is promoting a volunteer army system, but that this is not equivalent to an all-volunteer one. President Ma said that the primary difference between the two systems is that Taiwan will still maintain a conscription system under which males of conscription age will still receive four months of basic and specialized training. Due to the changing of times and war types, males who are presently drafted are required to serve only for one year. After deducting the period in which they receive training, the amount of time that they must continue in service is quite limited and is not adding enough to the nation's combat preparedness, he explained. Consequently, the president said, the introduction of a volunteer army system not only will not cause a slide in Taiwan's combat abilities, but rather will help to enhance it.
President Ma stated that about 600,000 troops were in service when the ROC military retreated to Taiwan. This number, however, had fallen to 450,000 troops in 1998, and after a series of reforms emphasizing better trained forces, the number now stands at about 215,000, the president said. While this number represents about 0.9% of Taiwan's population, it is still too high, he noted. President Ma explained that Taiwan's security should be able to be sufficiently maintained with forces numbering between 0.6% and 0.7% of the nation's population. In addition, he said, the move from a draft system to a volunteer army system could enhance the level of mastery in the military, as well as combat preparedness. President Ma said that he hopes Taiwan can learn from the successful experience of the United States in promoting a volunteer army. At last, he expresses his desire for continued strengthening of cooperation and interaction that will deepen the relationship between the two countries.