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China Post
Wed, 17 Mar 2010
TAIPEI, Taiwan ---- President Ma Ying-jeou of Taiwan has dismissed speculation that he could meet with his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama when they are both in Guam later this month.
Ma is scheduled to stop over in Guam on March 21 en route to a visit to Taiwan's allies in the South Pacific.
Media reported noted that Obama will also be in Guam on the same day, sparking speculation that the two leaders might meet.
“No, no,” Ma said briefly in a public event in response to the speculation. He said that he will be in Guam at a different time of that day from Obama.
President Ma is making a “pure stop-over” in Guam en-route to the South Pacific, said Chen.
The president is expected to depart on March 21 for a trip that will bring him to the Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Nauru, the Solomon Islands and Palau. He will return to Taiwan on March 27, according to the ministry.
It will be Ma's first visit to the South Pacific allies since becoming president. He has a packed schedule on his first official trip to the South Pacific, during which he will discuss — among other topics — the impact of climate change, unveil a number of collaboration projects and promote Taiwan-made products.
His itinerary will include meetings with his counterparts on issues such as fishery cooperation, climate change, energy resource development and vocational training.
All of these topics were tailored, based on the needs of each country, said Foreign Minister Timothy C.T. Yang at a press conference.
In the Marshall Islands, the focus will be on providing medical services, especially cataract surgeries, while in Kiribati it will be on Taiwan's efforts to establish a fishery cultivation center there.
Taiwan will work with Tuvalu authorities on vocational training for fishermen, collaborate with Palau on indigenous cultural exchanges, set up an agricultural program in Nauru, and discuss with Solomon Islands official’s prospects for the development of alternative energy there.
In addition, Yang said, President Ma will take the opportunity to promote Taiwan-made products. He will be carrying with him mobile phones made by HTC, a Taiwan-based manufacturer of smart phones, as gifts for high-ranking officials of the six countries, and promote solar cells made by Motech Industries, one of the top ten solar cell manufacturers in the world.
Acknowledging that the use of such devices might be limited in the six countries because of the lack of 3G
mobile telecommunication infrastructure, Yang said that the idea is to promote Taiwanese products.
Meanwhile, the MOFA has already shipped two Luxgen MPV cars — Taiwan's first automobile brand made by the Yulon Group — to Taiwan embassies in Kiribati and the Solomon Islands to replace older vehicles.
The idea is to replace older cars and at the same time display the Taiwan-made products to foreigners, Yang said. The ministry could do the same at all Taiwanese embassies abroad to promote Taiwan-made automobiles, he added.
“Diplomacy also includes the promotion of local products and trade opportunities,” he stressed.
In a departure from former President Chen Shui-bian's format of arranging a leaders' summit in one of the six South Pacific countries, Ma's will make separate state visits to all six nations, Yang noted.
President Ma wants to show his sincerity in deepening friendship and boosting cooperation with the allies, Yang said. The delegation will travel aboard a China Airlines 737 800 plane.
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