President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday thanked the US Veterans of Foreign Wars for its long-term support for Taiwan in a prerecorded video addressing the opening of the organization’s 124th National Convention.
Tsai thanked the organization’s commander-in-chief Timothy Borland for the invitation to address the event and expressed gratitude to the organization for passing a resolution each year in support of Taiwan.
The resolution “recognizes Taiwan as a long-time friend of the US, and calls for real, substantive support in the form of defense and security cooperation,” she said.
Photo courtesy of the Presidential Office
The support of the organization “is rooted deeply in our common values of freedom and democracy,” she said.
Tsai also thanked the US public and government for their “increasing support for Taiwan,” such as through arms sales to the nation, as well as calls for stronger Taiwan-US relations by lawmakers across party lines.
“We are grateful for these concrete actions to enhance Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities,” Tsai said.
Several delegations of high-ranking US officials have visited Taiwan in the past couple of years, including then-US House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi in August last year, she said.
Tsai also met with US House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy and many US lawmakers during her transit in the US in April, she said.
“Overwhelmingly, the message we heard from our American friends was clear. That is the US stands with Taiwan,” Tsai said.
The US Veterans of Foreign Wars often sends delegations to visit Taiwan and share its experience in serving veterans, the most recent being Borland and executive director Ryan Gallucci’s visit in May, she said.
“All of America and all of Taiwan can understand how closely we work and protect our needs,” Borland said during his visit, which is why he invited Tsai to deliver the address.
Taiwan’s Veterans Affairs Council and the organization signed a fraternal relationship agreement in 1980, Tsai said.
Taiwan is fortunate to be able to learn from the experience of the organization regarding how to support veterans, she said.
The council dispatched permanent staff to Washington for the first time when the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US established a Veterans Affairs Division last year, she added.
The division has established communications with officials at the US Department of Veterans Affairs to exchange views and best practices on services for veterans, Tsai said.
“I would like to express my gratitude to the veterans who have fought and sacrificed to preserve what we all cherish most, that is our free and democratic way of life,” she said.
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