00:00I think if you've been following, you know that I have a unique perspective from my colleagues.
00:07I was a young man in 1979.I lived in Taichung and Myali and Nanto.
00:13And at that time,Taiwan was under martial law.
00:17Imagine now coming back and just a few decades later and seeing the vast prosperity,
00:23the democracy,the flourishing democracy that you have.
00:27I think there's few examples of this throughout the whole world and throughout the whole world history.
00:32And it's fun and it's thrilling for me to watch and to be part of that.
00:37In 1979,I think it's fair to say that the relationship between Taiwan and the United States
00:42was a little bit of a parent and a child relationship where Taiwan looked to the United States to have
00:48a lot of help.
00:49And I think that relationship has changed dramatically to more of two partners,
00:54partners who both contribute to the relationship and who both bring unique things that help each other.
01:00That's one of the reasons that I so strongly feel that Taiwan should pass the special defense budget.
01:07That's part of that role of that partnership in us working together.
01:10It's important that when I go home to my colleagues in the Senate that I'm able to say
01:14to them,
01:15and they're carrying their weight,they're picking up their end of the stick and they're doing their
01:18part
01:18and not overly dependent on us in the United States.
01:22And we invest in the United States in defense and not only protecting this part of the world,
01:29but the entire world.
01:30We need to know that you're there with us,that you're lifting your end of the stick as
01:34well.
01:34So I'm grateful and I want you to know that most of all I,I spent this last few
01:40days driving around looking out the bus window
01:42and out my hotel window and just thinking back how improbable it was that that 19 year old
01:49that rode that tall, tall bicycle
01:51so many years ago is now meeting with your leaders and with all of you.
01:56and just please know there's a lot of appreciation for you,for your culture,for the culture of the
02:01Taiwanese people,for the hospitality
02:03and the kindness that you all exhibit to me.Thank you.
留言