PRESIDENT TSAI’S VISIT TO ST. KITTS AND NEVIS IMPORTANT FOR THE DEEPENING OF BILATERAL RELATIONS BETWEEN BOTH COUNTRIES

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, July 19, 2019 (Press Unit in the Office of the Prime Minister) – The Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris, has said that the recently concluded State Visit by the President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) to the twin island Federation was an important and necessary gesture for the deepening of diplomatic and bilateral relations between both countries.
Her Excellency Dr. Tsai Ing-wen and a delegation of more than one hundred parliamentary and government officials, businessmen and media representatives visited St. Kitts and Nevis from Saturday, July 13 to Tuesday, July 16, 2019.

While appearing as the special guest on Thursday (July 18) night’s edition of the popular radio programme, Straight Talk, on WINNFM 98.9, Prime Minister Harris stated that the visits of high level officials help in significant ways in enhancing bilateral relationships “and are effective tools of modern day diplomacy.”

“You visit, you interact, you engage and you get a keener sense of the life, of the expectations and aspirations of the people in that particular country, and therefore when you are called upon to do something you can bring a greater sense of realism [or] urgency if needed to that action which you must do,” Prime Minister Harris added.

Since the establishment of formal diplomatic relations with the twin-island Federation in 1983, the Republic of China (Taiwan) has made tremendous contributions in several areas including national security, information and communication technology, education, sport, agriculture, health and most recently to public infrastructure with the injection of a significant financial contribution towards the build out of the Old Road Bay Road Rehabilitation Project.

Prime Minister Harris said he was particularly pleased that while on island, the visiting president had the opportunity to observe firsthand the construction work taking place on that project “and she commended us because she said St. Kitts and Nevis is one of the countries where certainly for every project they have supported, they have received updates and they have tangible evidence of the successful implementation of it, and that was a good remark coming from her because we pride ourselves on being the most accountable government within the region and certainly in the history of St. Kitts and Nevis.”

This was the third such occasion where the president of Taiwan visited St. Kitts and Nevis, beginning with President Chen Shui-bian in 2005 and President Ma Ying-jeou in 2013.

However, on this occasion, President Tsai became the first President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) to visit the island of Nevis.