President Tsai Ing-wen (front, sixth right) gives the thumbs-up alongside members of a NATMA delegation Nov. 4 at the Presidential Office in Taipei City. (Courtesy of PO)

President Tsai Ing-wen said Nov. 4 that the North American Taiwanese Medical Association has played a crucial role in furthering Taiwan-U.S. ties.
 
NATMA has consistently been a leader in the Taiwan expatriate community in the U.S, Tsai said. This has placed it at the forefront of efforts to strengthen bilateral relations, she added.
 
According to Tsai, these efforts are one example of how Taiwan citizens at home and abroad are working alongside their like-minded partners in the U.S. Other instances in the last month include cooperation on the joint staging in Taipei of the first Pacific Islands Dialogue and the greenlighting of guava imports by the U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, making Taiwan only the second country in the world to garner such approval, she added.
 
Tsai made the remarks while receiving a NATMA delegation visiting Taiwan on a medical exchange tour at the Presidential Office in Taipei City.
 
She also thanked the organization for its rock-solid backing of Taiwan’s international development and diplomatic campaigns. This includes undertaking volunteer medical missions in Paraguay last year and a delegation led by association president Chiu Chun-chieh to support the country’s participation as an observer at the World Health Assembly in Geneva in May.
 
NATMA has always strived to raise awareness of Taiwan’s contributions to the world, Tsai said. The organization will doubtless continue working with the government to increase the country’s international profile, she added.
 
Founded in 1983, NATMA promotes cultural and educational exchanges among U.S.-based Taiwan expatriates in the medical, dental and allied health professions. (YCH-E)