President Ma Ying-jeou returned to Taiwan on the evening of July 5, concluding his trip to attend the inauguration ceremonies of Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela and visit El Salvador. The president delivered remarks at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport upon his arrival to brief listeners on the achievements of this trip.
President Ma explained that he visited four cities in three countries over the course of this seven-day and six-night trip. Apart from attending the inauguration ceremonies for Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela, the president said, he also stopped in El Salvador and signed a joint communiqué with Salvadoran President Salvador Sanchez Ceren. He commented that the objectives of this trip were achieved.
President Ma noted that over 20 heads and deputy heads of state attended the swearing-in ceremonies for President Varela. Due to a delay in the election of the president of Panama's National Assembly, President Ma said, he had ample time to interact with representatives from other countries, including US Secretary of State John Kerry and Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, which made this trip even more fruitful.
The president commented that during his visit to El Salvador he had discussions with President Sanchez, and during a state dinner held the day before in Panama by Panama's outgoing President Ricardo Alberto Martinelli Berrocal, he and President Martinelli were able to speak at length on a range of topics. President Ma stated that in comparison with previous visits overseas, on this trip he had even more opportunities to talk with the leaders and high-ranking officials of allied and friendly nations, which was especially gratifying.
President Ma remarked that the ROC government's promotion of its "viable diplomacy" policy has been well-received and that the allies of the ROC have been willing to act in conjunction with this initiative. For instance, both Panama and El Salvador in the past have expressed willingness to expand their cooperation with the ROC in the areas of trade, investment, and tourism. He said he was joined on this trip by Minister of Economic Affairs Chia-juch Chang (張家祝) and Minister of Transportation and Communications Yeh Kuang-Shih (葉匡時), and thanks to their presence talks proceeded especially smoothly. In particular, he noted, Panama is about to embark on a widening of the Panama Canal, and the two countries are looking to further strengthen cooperation.
Lastly, President Ma thanked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the arrangements it made for the trip, as well as the staff of ROC embassies in the countries he visited for their help in making sure everything went smoothly. He concluded his remarks by wishing everyone the best.
Among those at the airport to welcome President Ma back to Taiwan were Secretary-General to the President Timothy Chin-Tien Yang (楊進添), National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Lu Hsiao-jung (陸小榮), Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Ting Joseph Shih (石定), Republic of Nauru Ambassador to the ROC Ludwig Dowong Keke, who is the head of the foreign diplomatic corps stationed in the ROC, Panama Ambassador to the ROC Jose Antonio Perez Iranzo, and El Salvador Ambassador to the ROC Marta Chang de Tsien and Mr. Tsien.