[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 12859]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     FAREWELL TO ROC AMBASSADOR WU

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. SHELLEY BERKLEY

                               of nevada

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 18, 2008

  Ms. BERKLEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to express my best wishes to 
Dr. Joseph Jaushieh Wu and his family. After representing the Republic 
of China (Taiwan) for 1 year and 2 months, the Wu's will be leaving 
Washington this month.
  Ambassador Wu graduated from National Chengchi University in Taiwan 
and earned his Ph.D. in political science from Ohio State University. 
He taught briefly at Ohio State and later at his alma mater, National 
Chengchi University. In 2002, he began his government career as Deputy 
Secretary-General to President Chen Shui-bian. From 2004 to April 2007, 
he was the chairman of Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council. He is the 
author of a number of publications, most notably, Taiwan's 
Democratization, published by Oxford University Press. In April 2007, 
he was appointed Taiwan's Representative to the United States.
  As we all know, Taiwan has been undergoing profound political changes 
in recent years. With his strong communication skills, Ambassador Wu 
has given countless briefings to administration officials, senators, 
representatives and the media about Taiwan's internal politics, while 
at the same time, deftly highlighting Taiwan's willingness to negotiate 
with the People's Republic without pre-conditions. He has rightly 
emphasized Taiwan's strong political and cultural ties to the U.S., its 
trade relations with us, and its cooperation in combating global 
terrorism.
  Today our government maintains a robust relationship with Taiwan 
because of leaders like Dr. Wu. We consider Taiwan a democratic ally 
and a strong trading partner. Nevertheless, due to the lack of official 
diplomatic relations between our two countries, it has not been always 
easy for Ambassador Wu to serve as interlocutor between our two 
governments. Despite all the challenges, Ambassador Wu has served his 
country with distinction and helped to strengthen the U.S.-Taiwan 
relationship.
  I wish Ambassador Wu and his family the very best.

                          ____________________