President Ma Ying-jeou met on the morning of March 5 with Dr. Eric Wakin, Associate Director and Robert H. Malott Director of Library and Archives of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. The president, on behalf of the government and people of the ROC, extended a warm welcome to Dr. Wakin on his visit to Taiwan, and also expressed hope that the ROC and the United States can continue to strengthen their cooperation.
In remarks, the president pointed out that the Hoover Institution is one of the most highly regarded think tanks in the United States, and has a long history of ties with the ROC. It is home to the diaries of the late ROC Presidents Chiang Kai-shek and Chiang Ching-kuo, along with other important historical materials on modern Chinese history, giving the institution a leading position in related research. Even more important, being housed at the Hoover Institution means that this treasure trove of rare historical documents can be utilized to the fullest.
President Ma mentioned that this year marks the 70th anniversary of the ROC's victory in the War of Resistance Against Japan. A series of commemorative activities will be held here between July 7 (the date of the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, widely regarded as the start of the war) and October 25 (Taiwan's Retrocession Day, which marks the end of Japanese rule in Taiwan and its handover to the ROC). The government is in the process of inviting relatives of individuals who were important during that period to visit Taiwan and take part in the activities. Among those being invited are Thomas Rabe, grandson of John Rabe, who is credited with helping to shelter over 200,000 Chinese people during the Nanjing Massacre; descendants of Soviet aviators who came to the assistance of the ROC in the early days of the war; descendants of General Jimmy Doolittle, who commanded a raid of Tokyo; and relatives of members of the Flying Tigers squadron, including Nell Calloway, granddaughter of Lieutenant General Claire Lee Chennault. The president hopes these activities will help commemorate this important period in history.
The president then mentioned that Taiwan's Public Television Service and a mainland Chinese media firm collaborated on the filming of a documentary called "The Flying Tigers." The film shows how the ROC and the United States fought shoulder-to-shoulder in the war, and the touching stories left behind. He also said the ROC would be pleased to provide assistance if it can work with the Hoover Institution on the production of related records in the future.
With respect to ROC-US relations, President Ma stated that he has worked to restore mutual trust at the highest levels since taking office in 2008 and that bilateral relations over the past nearly seven years have improved considerably. In addition to Taiwan being included in the US Visa Waiver Program, the value of arms sold by the United States to the ROC was also unprecedented in the past 20 years. This has enabled the cooperative relationship in the area of security to be the most stable since the severance of diplomatic ties between the two countries, he said. Meanwhile, last year the United States surpassed Japan to become Taiwan's second largest trading partner, and the United States is also Taiwan's foremost source of direct investment, having invested an aggregate US$23.5 billion here.
Looking forward, the president expressed hope that the two countries will be able to sign a bilateral investment agreement in the near future. In addition, the American administration is looking to obtain authority from Congress to promote the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and Taiwan has high hopes to become a signatory to participate more fully in regional economic integration, he said.
As for cross-strait relations, President Ma stressed that since he took office, the ROC government has consistently sought, under the framework of the ROC Constitution, to maintain the status quo of "no unification, no independence, no use of force" in the Taiwan Strait. It has also sought to promote the peaceful development of cross-strait ties under the "1992 Consensus," whereby each side acknowledges the existence of "one China" but maintains its own interpretation of what that means. These important declarations have both helped to stabilize cross-strait relations, and at the same time promoted stability in ROC-US ties, he said.
The president mentioned that 36 years ago when the United States and mainland China established diplomatic relations, US politicians and academics analyzed the situation and felt that simultaneous trilateral relations among the United States, Japan, and mainland China in the 20th century would be untenable. They felt that way because prior to the 1950s, the United States and China of that era worked together in repelling the Japanese invasion, and later on the United States and Japan cooperated to resist Communist China. It was only after the United States and mainland China established ties that America was able to forge contact with Communist China and Japan at the same time. And with respect to the trilateral relationship involving the United States, Taiwan, and mainland China, the president said it was only after he took office and strived to improve cross-strait and ROC-US relations that the American government was able to engage the ROC and the mainland at the same time.
President Ma stressed that in the past the agenda involving cross-strait relations and the ROC's international relations created conflict, resulting in a vicious cycle. The efforts of the government over the past six years, however, have transformed this into a "virtuous cycle." The United States has even stated that it is optimistic about the future development of cross-strait relations. In addition, the president said that the government has not only sought to maintain peace in the Taiwan Strait, but also in the East China Sea and the South China Sea, reaching consensuses with Japan and the Philippines, respectively, on the issues of fisheries and the enforcement of laws. This fully shows the ROC's determination and success in playing the role of "regional peacemaker," he said. The ROC, the president stated, will in the future continue to assist in promoting regional peace.