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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 Delegations arrive for Lai’s inauguration
President-elect William Lai speaks at a reception at the Taipei Guest House in Taipei last night. Photo: Screen grab from the Presidential Office’s Flickr page
SHOW OF SUPPORT: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said 508 guests from 51 delegations are expected to attend today’s inauguration ceremony in Taipei
By Liu Tzu-hsuan / Staff reporter
Delegations from Taiwan’s diplomatic allies and other friendly countries have arrived in the nation to attend the inauguration of president-elect William Lai （賴清德） and vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim （蕭美琴） today.
From the presidential election on Jan. 13 until today, 687 foreign guests from 73 delegations have come to Taiwan to deliver congratulatory messages to the newly elected leaders, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Among them, 508 guests from 51 delegations, including eight led by heads of state, are attending today’s inauguration ceremony and other related events, it added.
Pope Francis appointed the Holy See’s Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines Charles John Brown to visit Taiwan from yesterday to tomorrow as a special envoy, the ministry said.
The Pope asked the Archbishop to congratulate Lai and pray for prosperity of Taiwanese, it said.
Other European countries also sent delegations to Taiwan, including 39 guests from the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Slovakia, Sweden, Ukraine, the European Parliament and the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, the ministry said.
Some of the heavyweight guests include former Lithuanian president Dalia Grybauskaite, European Parliament Subcommittee on Security and Defence Vice Chair Rasa Jukneviciene, British-Taiwanese All-Party Parliamentary Group Chair Lord Rogan, British Trade Envoy to Taiwan Lord Faulkner, Italian Senate Vice President Gian Marco Centinaio and German-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group Chair Klaus-Peter Willsch, it said.
Guests from North America include a delegation led by former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo; a delegation comprising former US deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage, former assistant to the US president and director of the National Economic Council Brian Deese, former American Institute in Taiwan （AIT） chair Richard Bush and AIT Chair Laura Rosenberger; as well as an 11-member delegation led by Canadian lawmaker Judy Sgro, the ministry said.
Pacific Century Institute chairman and former AIT chair Raymond Burghardt, former AIT director Brent Christensen and Washington Times board of directors chairman Tom McDevitt are also in Taiwan, it added.
Former Singaporean parliament speaker Abdullah Tarmugi, South Korean National Assembly member and South Korea-Taiwan Parliamentarian Friendship Association president Cho Kyoung-tae, and Australian senators Raff Ciccone and David Fawcett also arrived in Taiwan, the ministry said.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
Locally-made AT-3 advanced jet trainers fly past the Presidential Office Building in Taipei yesterday during a rehearsal for today’s presidential inauguration ceremony. Photo: CNA
