Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes yesterday visited Kaohsiung Harbor for a first-hand look at an ongoing project to revitalize the area and learn more about the history of the southern port city.
Accompanied by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), Cartes first stopped at the Kaohsiung Exhibition Center, which is next to the harbor.
While the two presidents viewed the harbor, Tsai introduced her Paraguayan counterpart to the development of the port.
Photo: Ko You-hau, Taipei Times
Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) gave a speech to welcome the guests, lauding the long-standing ties between Taiwan and Paraguay.
Built during the Japanese colonial era, Kaohsiung Harbor played a focal role in the development of the nation’s heavy industry in the 1970s and 1980s, Chen said.
The harbor is undergoing an industrial transformation and is seeking to integrate with the technology and tourism industries, she said.
Giving a briefing on the city’s latest revitalization project, the “New Bay Area,” Kaohsiung Deputy Mayor Shih Che (史哲) said the project covers 600 hectares and is aimed at further developing the exhibition and yacht industries.
After the briefings, Cartes and Tsai boarded a yacht to tour the harbor, accompanied by Chen.
Cartes was on his third visit to Taiwan since assuming the presidency in 2013.
He arrived on Tuesday for a three-day state visit to mark the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two nations.
He attended several events, including a painting exhibition, to mark the occasion, and to promote bilateral trade and economic exchanges, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
During talks between the two presidents on Wednesday, Tsai announced new rules allowing visa-free entry for Paraguayan citizens to Taiwan, while Cartes said his country would continue to help Taiwan take part in international organizations and activities.
The two leaders also witnessed the signing of an economic cooperation agreement and the exemption of double verification of official papers.
Taiwan and Paraguay established official ties on July 12, 1957. Paraguay is Taiwan’s only diplomatic ally in South America.
Cartes’ visit comes after Panama cut formal ties with Taiwan and established diplomatic relations with China on June 13, leaving Taipei with 20 diplomatic allies.
Panama was the second country to switch diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing since Tsai took office in May last year. Sao Tome and Principe was the first.
POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT: Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the meeting next month, Japanese sources said The holding of a Japan-US leaders’ meeting ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to China is positive news for Taiwan, former Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association representative Hiroyasu Izumi said yesterday. After the Liberal Democratic Party’s landslide victory in Japan’s House of Representatives election, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is scheduled to visit the US next month, where she is to meet with Trump ahead of the US president’s planned visit to China from March 31 to April 2 for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the
‘LIKE-MINDED PARTNER’: Tako van Popta said it would be inappropriate to delay signing the deal with Taiwan because of China, adding he would promote the issue Canadian senators have stressed Taiwan’s importance for international trade and expressed enthusiasm for ensuring the Taiwan-Canada trade cooperation framework agreement is implemented this year. Representative to Canada Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) in an interview with the Central News Agency (CNA) said he was increasingly uneasy about Ottawa’s delays in signing the agreement, especially as Ottawa has warmed toward Beijing. There are “no negotiations left. Not only [is it] initialed, we have three versions of the text ready: English, French and Mandarin,” Tseng said. “That tells you how close we are to the final signature.” Tseng said that he hoped Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday bestowed one of Taiwan’s highest honors on Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) Ambassador Andrea Clare Bowman in recognition of her contributions to bilateral ties. “By conferring the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon on Ambassador Bowman today, I want to sincerely thank her, on behalf of the Taiwanese people, for her outstanding contribution to deepening diplomatic ties between Taiwan and SVG,” Lai said at a ceremony held at the Presidential Office in Taipei. He noted that Bowman became SVG’s first ambassador to Taiwan in 2019 and
A man walks past elementary school artworks at the Taipei Lantern Festival in Ximen District yesterday, the first day of the event. The festival is to run from 5pm to 10pm through March 15.
RSS