[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 100 (Tuesday, June 17, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1242]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           HONORING TAIWAN'S AMBASSADOR JAUSIEH ``JOSEPH'' WU

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. THOMAS G. TANCREDO

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 17, 2008

  Mr. TANCREDO. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Taiwan's 
Ambassador to the United States, Jausieh ``Joseph'' Wu.
  Prior to entering politics, Ambassador Wu was an academic, completing 
his Ph.D. in political science in 1989 at Ohio State University. After 
serving as a teacher in the political science department at Ohio State, 
he became deputy director of the Institute of International Relations 
at Taiwan's National Chengchi University.
  When the landmark election of President Chen Shui-Bian in 2000 
officially put an end to one-party authoritarian rule in Taiwan, 
Ambassador Wu left academia to serve his country in government.
  He was appointed Deputy Secretary General of the Presidential Office, 
and in 2004 he was tapped by President Chen to head the Mainland 
Affairs Council in Taiwan, the government body in charge of 
coordinating bilateral state-to-state relations with the People's 
Republic of China. Wu performed admirably in this position despite 
unprecedented threats and belligerence from China designed to undermine 
President Chen's efforts in Taiwan to expand and deepen its young 
democracy. Much to the dismay of the Chinese, however, the people of 
Taiwan resisted this pressure--successfully amending their National 
Constitution and holding the nation's first democratic referendum.
  In 2007, Ambassador Wu was appointed to his current position as 
Taiwan's Ambassador in Washington, a position nearly as important as 
the post of Foreign Minister. His invaluable experience as Mainland 
Affairs Council chief gave him a keen understanding of the Chinese 
military threat to Taiwan and U.S. interests in the region and around 
the world--knowledge that made him an ideal choice for this important 
post. His appointment as Ambassador was also an historic event for 
Taiwan, as Ambassador Wu became the first non-Kuomintang Ambassador 
from Taiwan to the United States.
  During his time as Ambassador to the United States, Wu served with 
the same professionalism and diligence as he did in his prior 
positions. Ambassador Wu and his staff have worked tirelessly to 
improve Taiwan's traditionally solid relationship with Congress and 
helped to strengthen the bilateral U.S.-Taiwan relationship--a 
relationship based on our shared values and our commitment to 
democracy.
  Ambassador Wu has always gone to great lengths to improve mutual 
understanding and open lines of communication between the United States 
and Taiwan. During his tenure, the U.S. House of Representatives 
reciprocated that goodwill by moving to scrap antiquated and arbitrary, 
1970's-era State Department restrictions on communications between 
high-ranking U.S. and Taiwanese officials.
  I sincerely hope that the Senate will follow suit so that in the not-
too-distant future, the President of the United States can meet with 
the democratically elected President of Taiwan the same way he meets 
with the unelected dictator of the People's Republic of China.
  Madam Speaker, Ambassador Wu is an exceptional diplomat and a 
dedicated statesman. He is also my friend. I deeply appreciate his 
efforts to bring our two countries closer together, and I wish him all 
the best in his future endeavors.

                          ____________________