The purpose of the tightly-scheduled trip is not only to deepen the ties of friendship, but also to discuss cooperative ventures with Taiwan’s allies in the region, government officials said.
Prior to his departure, the president noted that the nation’s diplomacy is based on humanitarian values, culture and commerce. By forging diplomatic ties with other nations Taiwan is able to expand its presence on the international stage, he said.
The president also noted that as a result of his flexible diplomacy, Taiwan has not only won the esteem of its allies, its relationship with mainland China has also improved, so that the two sides are no longer engaged in a race to steal allies from one another.
“The theme of my trip is ‘effective collaboration and sustainable development,’” Ma said. “The areas of collaboration include medicine, agriculture and fisheries.”
According to the president’s itinerary, after making a one-hour refueling stop in U.S. territory Guam, Ma is scheduled to land in the Marshall Islands at 9 a.m. March 22 local time. He will stop there for five and a half hours, after which he will depart for Kiribati, where he will attend a state dinner on the same day.
Ma and his entourage will stay overnight at Kiribati, and depart for Tuvalu early in the morning March 23. He is slated to stay in Tuvalu to attend a state banquet.
The next stop on his itinerary is Nauru, which the president is expected to arrive in at 6 p.m. March 23 local time. In addition to attending a state dinner in Nauru, Ma will also spend the night there.
The president and his entourage will depart for the Solomon Islands at noon March 24. There he will meet with members of the Fleet of Friendship of the ROC Navy.
Ma is expected to stay in the Solomon Islands for two days. In addition to attending a state dinner, Ma and Frank Kabui, governor general of the Solomon Islands, will bestow national medals of honor upon one another.
On March 25, the president will address the Parliament of the Solomon Islands, and conduct interviews with members of the press from the Solomon Islands and Australia.
During his tour of the Solomon Islands, Ma will also film a weekly video, whose theme will be on Global Warming and Climate Change.
Sources said Ma had originally planned to shoot the video in Tuvalu, which is in most danger of being inundated as a result of rising sea levels. But he decided to film in the Solomon Islands instead because of the brevity of his stay in Tuvalu.
On March 26, Ma is scheduled to stop again at Guam, where he will meet with American Institute in Taiwan Chairman Raymond Burghardt, and from there he will fly to Palau. He is scheduled to return to Taiwan on the evening of March 27. (HZW)