Former vice president Lien Chan (連戰) arrived in Hawaii on Thursday to attend the leaders’ summit of the APEC forum as the envoy of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
Upon arrival at the Hilton Hotel in Honolulu, Lien, his wife and his small entourage of officials and business leaders were given a warm welcome by scores of Taiwanese expatriates waving Republic of China (ROC) flags.
Lien said the choice of Hawaii to host this year’s APEC meetings was “of great significance.” The Hawaii island chain connects the East and the West, geographically representing the APEC’s aim of consolidating the economies in the Asia-Pacific region on the Pacific Rim, he said.
Moreover, Honolulu was where ROC founding father Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙) received his formative education and where his thoughts of democracy and freedom were conceived, Lien said.
After spending years in China, the US and elsewhere, Sun returned to Honolulu in 1894, where he rallied a group of friends and relatives and founded the Hsing Chung Hui (興中會, or the Revive China Society), a group that was the precursor to the Chinese Nationlist Party (KMT) and the ROC government.
The issues on the agenda at the APEC summit, which will be hosted by US President Barack Obama, range from strengthening economic integration in the region to promoting green growth and enhancing cooperation in regulatory reform.
During this weekend’s summit, Lien will speak on Taiwan’s role in the semiconductor industry and will take part in discussions with business representatives of Walmart Asia and General Electric.
It is the fourth consecutive year that Lien has represented Ma at the APEC summits. China has routinely opposed the attendance of Taiwan’s president at APEC meetings.
It was considered likely that Lien would meet Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) yesterday ahead of the summit.
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