February 6, 2020
President You meets a delegation led by Austrian Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee Deputy Chairman Dr. Reinhold Lopatka
Legislative Yuan President You Si-kun, accompanied by Secretary General Lin Jih-jia, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Department of European Affairs Director General Johnson Chiang, and Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Austria Secretary Wang Chien-pang, met with a delegation led by Dr. Reinhold Lopatka, Deputy Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Austrian Assembly.
In remarks at the event, President You welcomed the Austrian members of parliament on behalf of the Legislative Yuan, stressing that this was the first delegation of parliamentarians he had had the pleasure of receiving since taking office as President. He continued that he wanted to take the opportunity to express both welcome and gratitude and hopes that the delegation would have a pleasant visit and enjoy the Lunar New Year Festival.
President You mentioned that his first impression of Europe was of Austria. It was summertime and the green forests everywhere were very beautiful. He found the scenery particularly awe-inspiring as, at the same time in Taiwan, the rice paddies were being harvested, and the land was not green. As his plane landed in Austria, he was struck by the beautiful scenery, a scene he remembers to this day.
He recalled that it was 1983, and the first place he landed in Europe was Vienna. Not only did he see the lush green land from the plane, but after descending and traveling in Vienna, he was immersed in the atmosphere of this capital of music. Vienna was full of culture and art, while Taiwan at that time was still not so advanced. These scenes made his trip to Europe.
President You said that although Taiwan and Austria are separated by half a world. Austria is an inland country, bordered by land on all sides, exactly the opposite situation of Taiwan, which is surrounded by the sea. Taiwan and Austria can be said to form a democratic alliance, because the two countries share such universal values as freedom, democracy, and human rights. He continued that he has been pleased with the progress of friendship between the two countries, where bilateral trade has reached US$1.1 billion. He then took the opportunity to thank all the members of parliament present, especially Fritz Neugebauer, who had also come to Taiwan in 2007. President You expressed his deep appreciation for his longstanding support of Taiwan.
President You explained that Austria is Taiwan’s 10th-largest trading partner in the European Union. Exchanges between the two countries in various areas, including agricultural products, are growing steadily, he said. He stressed his hope that, through this meeting, he would get to know Austria better and that friendship between the two countries would grow in the future and the relationship be enhanced.
President You mentioned that because of the recent outbreak of COVID-19, people had grown more aware of China. For its part, Taiwan has been doing its best to prevent an outbreak and has fully demonstrated its obligations and responsibilities in the international arena. However, since the outbreak of the pandemic, China has suppressed Taiwan‘s participation in the World Health Organization (WHO), meaning that Taiwan had not been able to receive information about the pandemic. He took this opportunity to express a hope that the guests would support Taiwan‘s participation in various international organizations, including the WHO, as Japan and the United States have done.
President You concluded by saying that he knew the delegation would visit his home Yilan County tomorrow, where they would visit the Lanyang Museum and the Kavalan Distillery. He wished everyone a pleasant stay in Yilan, as well as a successful trip, good health, and all the best during their visit to Taiwan.
In response, Deputy Chairman Lopatka expressed gratitude to President You for taking the time to meet with him. During his stay in Taiwan, he fully felt the warmth of the Taiwanese people, and every day was filled with gratitude. Austria, he said, would continue to be a voice for Taiwan‘s meaningful participation in international organizations. He congratulated President You on his election as the 10th President of the Legislative Yuan. The two sides then exchanged views on the operations of the Legislative Yuan and its committees, the proportion of female legislators in Taiwan, the bill proposal process, regulations on the employment of publicly funded assistants in the Legislative Yuan, the operation of the separation of powers in Taiwan, the exercise of police powers in the Legislative Yuan, and the manner in which the Control Yuan exercises its investigative powers.
The meeting lasted about 50 minutes and ended at 3:50 p.m. following the presentation of souvenirs and a group photo.
