President Tsai Ing-wen said Jan. 9 that Taiwan is committed to strengthening cooperation with democracies to uphold the shared values in the face of authoritarian expansion.
Tsai made the remarks while receiving a delegation from the Paraguay Chamber of Deputies at the Presidential Office in Taipei City. The group was led by Speaker Carlos Maria Lopez Lopez and comprises Teofilo Espinola Peralta, Edgar Espinola Guerrero and Rodrigo Daniel Blanco Amarilla, who are chairs of the social development, national defense and intelligence, and youth development committees, respectively.
The relationship between Taiwan and Paraguay has gone from strength to strength over the past six years, Tsai said, citing her first visit to the South American ally in 2016 and President Mario Abdo Benítez’s visit to Taiwan after taking office in 2018.
The two sides have had significant achievements in cooperative projects such as the launch of Taiwan-Paraguay Polytechnic University in 2018, Tsai said, adding that bilateral trade reached a record high of US$220 million from January to October last year.
Tsai took the opportunity to thank Paraguay for voicing support for Taiwan’s participation in international organizations like the World Health Assembly, the International Civil Aviation Organization and the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change. The government will continue to work with Paraguay to contribute more to the global community, she added.
In response, Lopez said the two countries have maintained official diplomatic relations for over 65 years. The shared friendship has bound the two allies closely despite the great geographical distance between them, he added.
Lopez expressed gratitude to Taiwan for the country’s assistance in offering scholarships to study in Taiwan to young Paraguayan students. It is anticipated that the two allies’ long-term diplomatic ties will continue to be strengthened, he added. (YCH-E)
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