The formal passage in the latter half of the year of the visa waiver program for Republic of China (ROC) citizens proposed by US President Barack Obama’s administration would greatly aid Taiwan-US relations, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) told a former US official yesterday.
Ma made the remarks during a meeting with Jeff Bader, Obama’s former senior director of Asian affairs at the US National Security Council, and his wife at the Presidential Office in Taipei.
Reflecting on Taiwan-US relations over the past four years, Ma thanked Bader and other Democrats for persuading then-US senator Obama to send a congratulatory message on Ma’s election in 2008, adding that Obama had personally written a letter at the time of Ma’s inauguration to show his support.
Photo: CNA
Bader is now a senior research fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington.
“Obama’s letter especially mentioned hopes of seeing an amelioration in cross-strait relations, as he felt such a direction would aid the development of US-ROC relations,” Ma said.
“Being informed of US-People’s Republic of China [PRC] talks” had been a boost in mutual trust in US-Taiwan relations, Ma said.
Ma added that Obama was “the president who has offered the most in arms sales in the history of US presidents, and holds a significant meaning to the future bolstering of Taiwan’s defenses,” referring to Obama’s notification to the US Congress in January 2010 and September last year of a total of about US$12 billion (NT$355 billion) in arms sales to Taiwan.
The Obama administration has also been very supportive of Taiwan’s participation in international events, Ma said.
The US’ comments at the World Health Assembly meeting in Geneva last year were “the most stalwart and clear support the US government has made in support of Taiwan at an international organization,” Ma said.
At the meeting in May last year, US Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius told the assembly: “We have made it very clear to the WHO and I think the United States’ position is that no organization of the UN has a right to unilaterally determine the position of Taiwan.”
Ma also said that the number of Taiwanese visitors to the US — reaching more than 400,000 people a year — greatly helped bilateral relations and interaction with the US public.
Taiwanese visitors to the US often spend a lot and this should help shrink the US’ trade deficit with Taiwan, Ma said.
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