President Ma Ying-jeou met with a delegation from the Pacific Forum of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), an American think tank, at the Presidential Office on the afternoon of October 16. The president, on behalf of the government and people of the ROC (Taiwan), expressed a warm welcome to the guests on their visit to Taiwan to take part in the international seminar titled "Taipei-Washington-Beijing Relations under the Ma and Obama Administrations." He also expressed his appreciation to them for closely following developments in the Asia-Pacific region and peace in the Taiwan Strait over the years.
The president remarked that the theme of this seminar is closely related to his own administrative policies since assuming office. President Ma said the government's efforts to improve cross-strait relations and reduce hostility between the two sides have yielded significant achievements. He specifically pointed out the three rounds of Chiang-Chen talks, held by Straits Exchange Foundation Chairman Chiang Pin-kung and Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin, and the resulting nine agreements signed, which cover a range of issues from direct aviation and navigation links, allowing mainland Chinese tourists to visit Taiwan, food security to mutual judicial assistance. Starting last month, he said, 270 flights are now plying routes between cities on either side of the Taiwan Strait each week on a scheduled basis, which is the first time this has been seen in 60 years. Now marks the closest interaction between the two sides over this stretch of time, he said.
President Ma commented that the fourth round of Chiang-Chen talks will be held in December. This set of negotiations will focus on issues such as the hiring of fishermen, setting forth related technical ground rules, and prevention of double taxation. Even though discussion of an economic cooperation framework agreement between the two sides is not on the agenda, talks on other fronts are already moving forward. The president said that interaction between the two sides is sure to become even closer in the future.
With regards to relations between Taiwan and the United States, President Ma said that since taking office he has worked aggressively to improve ties with America and re-establish trust between the two sides at the highest levels. On his three trips to Latin America he made transit stops in the United States that were carried out under the principles of safety and convenience. The president said the two sides maintained a good level of interaction and mutual trust during these stopovers.
Even though interaction between the United States, mainland China and Taiwan is developing in the right direction, the president said that many issues will still need to be resolved in the future. President Ma indicated that some in Taiwan are still skeptical about the future development of cross-strait relations. He said that he is paying close attention to these viewpoints. Over the past year-plus period, none of the agreements signed with mainland China have had any negative consequences for Taiwan's sovereignty or interests, he said. Meanwhile, as cross-strait relations further develop the government will keep an even closer eye on the situation to avoid any damage to the nation's sovereignty or the best interests of the people. On another front, the president said he hopes that Taiwan and the United States will sign an extradition treaty as soon as possible and that Taiwan will be included under the US visa waiver program. He added that he expects both sides to continue to promote a trade and investment framework agreement, thereby further bolstering substantive bilateral cooperative relations.
President Ma stressed that since taking office, the diplomatic truce between Taiwan and mainland China and a warmer atmosphere between the two has not only benefited the two sides, but also has been extended into the international arena. He said that Taiwan's embrace over the past year of policies emphasizing flexible diplomacy has yielded concrete results, such as boosting Taiwan's representation in APEC, Taiwan becoming a party to the Government Procurement Agreement, and Taiwan participating in the World Health Assembly.
The president stated that the foremost consideration for Taiwan in participating in the international community in the future will be to join in the United Nations' non-political specialized agencies and their activities so as to enhance Taiwan's security and provide convenience. He specifically pointed to Taiwan's interest to participate in the International Civil Aviation Organization and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. He said that Taiwan will adopt pragmatic methods in seeking to return to the United Nations system and that this is representative of the spirit of flexible diplomacy. President Ma said that in fact, the methods adopted by Taiwan have been well-received in the international community. He remarked that he hopes the government's efforts to stabilize the situation in the Taiwan Strait will continue to receive the support and assistance of the global community.