Dilmei L. Olkeriil, the Republic of Palau's new Ambassador to the ROC, presented her credentials to President Ma Ying-jeou at a ceremony held at 9:00 a.m. on June 10 at the Presidential Office. In addition to welcoming Ambassador Olkeriil to her new position, President Ma also called for a continued strengthening of cooperation between the two nations to solidify the alliance.
In remarks, the president first commented that Ambassador Olkeriil has studied at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, and he himself has studied at Harvard's School of Law, so the two share a common educational background. President Ma noted that Palau first dispatched a permanent ambassador to the ROC in July 2012, and Ambassador Olkeriil is that nation's second ambassador to the ROC. Ambassador Olkeriil, as a close confidant of Palau President Tommy E. Remengesau Jr., can work with the ROC's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other agencies to further advance bilateral relations, the president said.
President Ma stated that while the ROC and Palau have had diplomatic ties for just 15 years, the relationship is extremely close. Shortly after President Remengesau was elected last year, he led a delegation to Taiwan, and both sides exchanged opinions on a variety of issues, including the state of affairs in East Asia and cross-strait relations, he said. President Ma commented that President Remengesau's principles in governance and world view made a deep impression on him. He said he is confident that Palau will achieve stable development under the leadership of President Remengesau, as well as prosperity and wellbeing.
As for cooperation projects between the two countries, President Ma noted, the ROC and Palau have achieved considerable success in technical cooperation and projects focusing on health care, human resource cultivation, and clean energy. The focus of Ambassador Olkeriil's work in Taiwan, he said, is cooperation in the areas of medicine and public health. The president remarked that Taiwan's Shin Kong Wu Ho-Su Memorial Hospital has entered into a tie-up with Palau's Belau National Hospital, and patients from Palau who come to Taiwan for treatment receive excellent care. He stated that this cooperation will continue in the future. The president added that Taiwan's Health, Welfare & Environment Foundation and Palau's Ministry of Health are jointly promoting the Taiwan Health Cloud Service Program for Palau, which was formally launched this May to enhance the quality of health care for the people of Palau.
President Ma stated that the ROC is actively playing the role of "provider of humanitarian aid" in the international community. Over the past two years Palau has been hit hard by Typhoons Bopha and Haiyan, he said. Apart from providing donations to aid in disaster relief, the ROC also arranged for military aircraft to deliver material for post-disaster reconstruction, the president stated. President Ma remarked that the Red Cross Society of the Republic of China (Taiwan) provided a number of pre-fab structures to Palau, and their assembly was completed just before Christmas last year. This, he said, enabled the people of Palau to sense the warmth and kindheartedness of the ROC.
President Ma also mentioned that Palau is hosting the Pacific Islands Forum leaders' summit this year. The ROC fully supports this event and regularly dispatches a delegation to attend, he said, adding that the interaction is helping to enhance the ROC's friendly relations with Pacific island nations.
President Ma also thanked Palau for long speaking on behalf of the ROC in international venues and supporting Taiwan's participation in the International Civil Aviation Organization, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and other international organizations. He expressed hope that Ambassador Olkeriil's arrival at her new post will usher in greater mutual cooperation and interaction, adding even more depth to the bilateral alliance.