President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Tuesday attended Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega’s inauguration, who was re-elected to a third consecutive term in November last year.
She sat beside Nicaraguan Vice President Rosario Murillo during the ceremony at Revolution Square in Managua. The ceremony, which featured lively dance and music performances, drew thousands of Nicaraguans.
In addition to Tsai, whom Ortega referred to as the head of state of the Republica de Taiwan in his inauguration speech, the presidents of El Salvador, Honduras, Venezuela and Bolivia were in attendance for the festivities.
Photo: CNA
Tsai and her entourage — including government officials and Taiwanese business representatives — earlier in the day met with representatives of a Taiwan-Nicaragua business chamber and explored opportunities for greater cooperation.
Tsai said Taiwan and Nicaragua signed a free-trade agreement in 2006, and bilateral trade has grown rapidly over the past decade.
Despite challenges in the international economy, Tsai said she was confident that Taiwan and Nicaragua would be able to maintain and strengthen their trade relations, suggesting that the two nations use each other as a base to expand their presence in the Central American and Asian-
Photo: EPA
Pacific markets.
As complementary partners, Taiwan can import agricultural products from Nicaragua, while Nicaragua could learn from Taiwan’s management skills and introduce more advanced equipment from Taiwan to boost its industrial development, she said.
Tsai expressed the hope that Taiwanese business representatives traveling with her would use the visit to seek out investment opportunities.
“Let us move forward our trade exchanges with Nicaragua,” she said.
Following the meeting, Tsai visited Taiwanese textile and garment factories in Nicaragua to learn more about their operations there.
Tsai, who is in Nicaragua on the second leg of her Central American tour, was due to depart for Guatemala yesterday.
She is to visit El Salvador before returning to Taiwan on Sunday, with a stopover in San Francisco.
Tsai visited Honduras before arriving in Managua on Monday.
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