President Ma Ying-jeou on the afternoon of July 27 at the Presidential Office met with former Director of the American Institute in Taiwan, Taipei Office Douglas H. Paal and an accompanying group of scholars. The president, on behalf of the government of the Republic of China and the 23 million people of Taiwan, extended a warm welcome and appreciation to the visitors.
President Ma said that he has faced a number of challenges since taking office and has taken measures to change a number of things. In particular, he noted the meeting between Vice President Vincent C. Siew and Chinese President Hu Jintao at the Boao Forum, visits to Mainland China by Kuomintang Honorary Chairman Lien Chan and Kuomintang Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung, and negotiations between Taiwan’s Straits Exchange Foundation, chaired by Chiang Pin-kung, and Mainland China’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait on direct charter flights between the two sides. All of these events demonstrate that relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are developing along the path toward stability and mutual trust, he said. President Ma said he is confident that in the future these initiatives will yield positive results.
The president said that in August he intends to visit Paraguay and the Dominican Republic, two ROC diplomatic allies, to attend the inaugurations of heads of state in the two countries. On the way to and from Latin America, he will make brief transit stops in West Coast cities in the United States. He said he hopes that the transit stops will be without complication and will occur in a natural setting. He noted that the ROC and the United States have consistently maintained effective communication channels on many levels. The purpose of the upcoming journey is to attend the inauguration proceedings of leaders in allied nations and to solidify the ROC’s friendship with those countries. He said it is not his intention or style to politicize the trip for domestic consumption.
President Ma furthermore said that the ROC hopes in the future to maintain a friendly and interactive relationship with the United States, Japan and Mainland China. He noted that while a Taiwan sports fishing vessel was bumped by a Japanese coast guard vessel in June off the Diaoyutai islands, the issue was ultimately resolved in a satisfactory manner thanks to communication and the calm handling of the situation by high-ranking officials from both sides, preventing tensions from rising. President Ma said that after the conclusion of the incident, the ROC expressed appreciation for the efforts made by the Japanese government, while Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura in a televised interview praised Taiwan’s handling of the situation. The president said that remarks of this type are rarely heard.
The president also said that Mainland China has displayed its goodwill by using the name Chinese, Taipei for the team to be sent from Taiwan to the Beijing Olympics. President Ma feels that the results produced in the handling of the Diaoyutai incident and regarding Taiwan’s name in the Beijing Olympics indicate that the three sides are willing to demonstrate goodwill toward each other in an atmosphere of mutual respect. He said he believes this is an extremely positive development.
Former Director Paal said he is extremely positive on the developments in cross-strait relations. He added that Washington D.C. welcomes the improvement in relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait and hopes relations will continue to develop in a positive direction. This will not only help in alleviating tensions in the Asia-Pacific region, but also will be important in maintaining regional peace and security. In addition, improved cross-strait ties will also be beneficial to Taiwan’s economic development, he said. Former Director Paal added that a month ago he and a number of colleagues met with high-ranking Chinese officials and scholars in Beijing. They also expressed their belief that the current climate offers a rare opportunity in terms of cross-strait relations and that all sides should take advantage of this.
Dr. Paal said that over the past eight years, America’s favorable impression of Taiwan has changed in a number of respects. In addition, Taiwan has lost many old friends. He said he feels that Taiwan and the United States need to work to rebuild mutual trust and must start building their friendship over again, thereby recovering the friendship and trust that characterized the relationship in the past.