Guam and Taiwan Champion Warming Ties in Landmark Visit

TaiwanPlus News

Guam Governor Lou Leon Guerrero is visiting Taiwan for the first time, meeting with President Lai Ching-te to deepen ties in health care, tourism and regional security. The two emphasized a strong connection in shared Austronesian roots.

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00:00Here at Taiwan's Presidential Office, in the heart of the capital Taipei, Taiwan's

00:04President Lai Ching-da is welcoming the Governor of Guam, a US territory in the Pacific. It's

00:10Governor Lu Leong Guerrero's first visit to Taiwan since she took office. The island

00:15of Guam, about 2,700 kilometres away, is the closest US territory to Taiwan, and is also

00:22home to one of the largest US military bases in the region. While Taiwan and the US do

00:28not have official diplomatic ties, a visit like this carries weight. Taiwan depends on

00:33the US's support to counter China, which claims Taiwan as part of its territory and threatens

00:39to take by force. The US's deterrence in this region depends on the strategically located

00:45island of Guam.

00:46I share the same belief that we, in collaboration, cooperation and support and working with each

00:54other, we can gain prosperity, continue our freedom and democracy, and live in peaceful,

01:02deserving life.

01:04Lai and Guerrero highlighted shared Austronesian roots, cooperation in healthcare and education,

01:11and said they plan to boost tourism and flights between the two islands.

01:15Taiwan's President Lai Ching-da has made bolstering ties with the Pacific a priority of his presidency.

01:21Last year, he spent a week visiting friends and allies there, including Guam, touting shared

01:26histories and values. This visit, another demonstration of how Lai is looking east towards the Pacific,

01:32as he counters China's claims over his country.

01:36Lee Sin-chen and Rick Lauert in Taipei for Taiwan Plus.

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