Premier Lin Chuan received Douglas Paal, vice president for studies at the Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace at the Executive Yuan today, and pledged to deepen the Taiwan-U.S. friendship while expressing hope that the U.S. will continue to support Taiwan's participation in international affairs.
The Taiwan-U.S. relationship enjoys strong bipartisan support in the U.S., Premier Lin said, and Taiwan will build on the existing foundation to work closely with the incoming U.S. administration to promote further cooperation in trade, security and other areas.
Premier Lin also expressed his concerns about the Trump administration and its policies, especially regarding Asia-Pacific affairs. The premier and Mr. Paal exchanged views on issues such as Mr. Trump's plan to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, U.S. principles regarding the signing of bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, and future collaboration between Taiwan and the U.S.
Mr. Paal was making his first visit to Taiwan following the U.S. presidential election to gain a better understanding of Taiwan's progress in implementing domestic reform policies and recent developments in cross-strait relations.