Ten members of the US Congress pledged support and assistance for Taiwan’s participation in regional economic integration and for stronger US-Taiwan economic relations during telephone conversations with President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), officials said yesterday.
During a 24-hour layover in Los Angeles on his way home from Honduras, Ma spoke with 20 US politicians by phone, including former US president Bill Clinton, former secretaries of state Hillary Rodham Clinton and Condoleezza Rice and former secretary of defense Donald Rumsfeld, members of his delegation said.
In his conversations with the 10 lawmakers, Ma expressed Taiwan’s determination and willingness to participate in the US-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the officials said, adding that many of the lawmakers showed support and promised to fully assist Taiwan’s bid to join the TPP.
Among the lawmakers Ma called were senators Dianne Feinstein and James Inhofe and representatives Devin Nunes, Brad Sherman and Charles Rangel, they said.
Ma returned to Taipei early yesterday after an eight-day trip that took him to Sao Tome and Principe, Burkina Faso and Honduras.
The trip solidified Taiwan’s ties and cooperation with those allies and also his policy of pursing “viable diplomacy,” Ma said after arriving at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.
The heads of state he met pledged continued support for Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations and their activities, he added.
Ma had a busy Lunar New Year’s Eve scheduled, including visits with the military and the police, dinner with his mother and an annual pilgrimage to a temple in New Taipei City (新北市).
People can preregister to receive their NT$10,000 (US$325) cash distributed from the central government on Nov. 5 after President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday signed the Special Budget for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience, the Executive Yuan told a news conference last night. The special budget, passed by the Legislative Yuan on Friday last week with a cash handout budget of NT$236 billion, was officially submitted to the Executive Yuan and the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon. People can register through the official Web site at https://10000.gov.tw to have the funds deposited into their bank accounts, withdraw the funds at automated teller
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