President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) upcoming three-nation Latin America tour slated to start today would not be affected by Typhoon Chan-Hom, although a land warning for the typhoon was issued late on Thursday, Presidential Office spokesman Charles Chen (陳以信) said.
Chen said that the government has to strike a balance between dealing with domestic and foreign affairs.
He said Ma always attaches great importance to disaster prevention and preparedness and has directed the Executive Yuan to be well-prepared for the coming typhoon.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ma is set to depart today for an eight-day trip to Taiwan’s diplomatic allies which would take him to the Dominican Republic tomorrow, the Republic of Haiti on Tuesday next week, and the Republic of Nicaragua on Wednesday next week. He is scheduled to return to Taiwan on Saturday next week.
Mainland Affairs Council head Hsia Li-yan (夏立言), is scheduled to visit Washington and New York from today to July 19 to brief US officials on the government’s policy toward China.
During his visit to Washington, Hsia is to meet with US government officials, members of the US House of Representatives and the Senate and academics to expound on Taiwan’s policy toward China and the development of relations across the Taiwan Strait and to exchange views on issues of mutual concern, ministry spokesperson Wu Mei-hung (吳美紅) said.
It is Hsia’s first trip to the US since he took office in February.
On Monday next week, Hsia is to deliver a keynote speech at a symposium titled Relations across the Taiwan Strait: Retrospective and prospects for future development.
The symposium is organized by the Washington-based think tank the Brookings Institution.
During the symposium, Hsia and experts from Taiwan, the US and China are to discuss cross-strait relations and examine political and economic conditions in China.
It was reported that Hsia’s Chinese counterpart, Taiwan Affairs Office Minister Zhang Zhijun (張志軍), is also planning to visit the US in July.
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