President Ma Ying-jeou met with the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) of the United States Commander-in-Chief William A. Thien and former Commander-in-Chief Allen Kent on the afternoon of March 26. In addition to recognizing the contributions of veterans to nations and society in general, the president also spoke about recent progress in relations between Taiwan and the United States.
In remarks, President Ma noted that the VFW presently has about 22 million members, which is nearly the population of Taiwan. He also pointed out that the US government in its budget for the coming fiscal year has allocated US$163.9 billion to be used for the medical care and treatment of veterans, burial and memorial services, and other benefits. In comparison, Taiwan is home to about 425,000 veterans. As these individuals gave a substantial portion of their youth to the nation, the government each year appropriates the equivalent of over US$4 billion to ensure that veterans enjoy a comfortable lifestyle. Funds go to providing long-term care, medical treatment, employment assistance, and education assistance, the president said, adding that this funding as a ratio of the government's total budget is comparable to that of the United States.
As for Taiwan-US relations, President Ma remarked, over 70 years ago the two countries fought side by side in the War of Resistance against Japan. In addition, the United States also provided assistance to the ROC to fight the Chinese communists and defend Taiwan, he said. In recent years, the president added, bilateral security cooperation has been every bit as strong as before diplomatic relations were severed. President Ma noted that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton publicly stated that Taiwan is an important security and economic partner of the United States. The president also stated that two years ago Taiwan was formally included in the US Visa Waiver Program, and last year the two sides resumed negotiations under the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement. He expressed hope that the United States will help Taiwan join the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which would integrate Taiwan more closely into the international economy.
President Ma further briefed his visitors on the state of military cooperation between the two sides. He noted that over the past five years the United States has sold Taiwan an aggregate US$18.3 billion in military hardware, and that 30 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters and 12 P-3C Orion anti-submarine and maritime surveillance aircrafts purchased by Taiwan are gradually being delivered. The president said that Taiwan is currently seeking to purchase two Perry class frigates from the United States and said he hopes that the United States will sell vessels that are currently in service to Taiwan. These vessels, he remarked, would help the ROC's Navy to enhance its defense capabilities at sea.
President Ma said that Taiwan's Veterans Affairs Council has specially arranged for the visitors to pay their respects at monuments erected to commemorate two former US military advisors who died defending Kinmen Island, Lt. Col. Alfred Medendorp and Lt. Col. Frank Lynn, along with a monument in Jinguashi in New Taipei City to commemorate allied soldiers imprisoned in Taiwan during World War II.
Lastly, the president mentioned that last year on November 23 he attended a Flying Tigers reunion and an event commemorating the 70th anniversary of an air raid by the Chinese-American Composite Wing on a Japanese air force base in Hsinchu. He said he took advantages of the occasion to meet with members of the Flying Tigers. These pilots had already arrived in the Republic of China before the bombing of Pearl Harbor and within seven months helped the ROC's air force shoot down 200 Japanese military aircraft while providing strong ground support and boosting morale during the War of Resistance.