Office of the President Republic of China(Taiwan)

On the morning of November 15, after welcoming President Russ Joseph Kun of the Republic of Nauru and First Lady Simina Kun with military honors, President Tsai Ing-wen, accompanied by Vice President Lai Ching-te, met with President Kun for bilateral talks. In remarks at their meeting, President Tsai emphasized that Taiwan and Nauru have achieved results working together in the fields of clean energy, digital capacity building, education, and culture, and expressed confidence that Taiwan and Nauru will continue to comprehensively deepen our cooperation and develop more significant projects for the benefit of our peoples.
 
A translation of President Tsai's remarks follows:

This is the first time that President Kun has visited Taiwan in the capacity of head of state, making this trip especially meaningful. On behalf of the people of Taiwan, I would like to once again extend a sincere welcome to you. When I visited Nauru in 2019, I attended the opening of the Taiwan Agriculture and Livestock Education Center. I also saw our medical and public health technical team actively working with our ally Nauru to create a safer and more prosperous living environment for its people.

On my visit to the monument commemorating the Boe Declaration, I witnessed Taiwan and Nauru jointly sign a coast guard cooperation agreement. These cooperative endeavors demonstrate the commitment and determination of our countries to address climate change and other future challenges. 

In an example of our productive collaboration on clean energy, the solar power system at the state-owned Menen Hotel, where I stayed, recently started operations.

Taiwan and Nauru have worked hand in hand to overcome the challenges of the pandemic. Nauru Airlines sent medical charter flights to Taiwan, referring a total of 104 patients for treatment. The disease prevention supplies and negative pressure isolation ward donated by Taiwan also played a key role when the pandemic broke out in Nauru.

Having majored in information engineering in college, President Kun is well aware of the importance of digital capacity building to sustainable national development. In May last year, Minister for Justice and Border Control [Pyon] Deiye joined us in witnessing the establishment of the Taiwan Digital Opportunity Center (TDOC) in Nauru's capital of Yaren. In the future, Nauru's stable and safe internet services will give its government, schoolchildren, and general public a wide range of opportunities to connect with the world and strengthen overall national digital capacity.

We also continue to promote educational and cultural cooperation with Nauru. Many recipients of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Taiwan Scholarship program have made outstanding achievements in various fields after graduating and returning to Nauru. Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade [Asterio] Appi, who is also here today, studied in Taiwan and is an alumnus of National Pingtung University of Science and Technology. In the future, we will continue to strengthen bilateral exchanges through educational and cultural cooperation and jointly engage in more talent development.

I believe that with the support of President Kun, Taiwan and Nauru will undoubtedly continue to deepen our cooperation across the board and develop more significant projects for the benefit of our peoples. 

I wish all of you a fruitful and successful visit. Thank you.

In his own remarks, President Kun thanked President Tsai for her warm and friendly hospitality, and explained that Nauru's long-term national vision as articulated in its National Sustainable Development Strategy outlines a future in which individual, community, business, and government partnerships contribute to a sustainable quality of life for all Nauruans. The central message of this strategy, President Kun said, is partnership for quality of life.

President Kun reiterated that Nauru values its partnership with the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan), a partnership which he noted spans over 30 years and which has matured into a genuine friendship. He further noted that the partnership between Nauru and Taiwan has been premised and fostered over the years on our mutual responsibilities to uphold the values of peace, freedom, democracy, and respect for human rights.

On behalf of the Republic of Nauru and its government, President Kun thanked the government of Taiwan for its continued assistance to Nauru in areas including infrastructure, health and medical care, agriculture, climate change, renewable energy, information technology, education, and contributions to its intergenerational trust fund.

The visiting delegation included Deputy Minister for Internal Affairs, Women and Social Development Affairs Isabella Dageago, Deputy Minister for Justice and Border Control Maverick Eoe, Deputy Minister for National Emergency Services and Sports Jesse Jeremiah, and Deputy Minister for Ronphos Delvin Thoma. The delegation was accompanied to the Presidential Office by Nauru Ambassador Jarden Kephas.