The President of Chile gave high appreciation of TAO in a Japan-Chile summit meeting of APEC and in a meeting with the President of the University of Tokyo.

Dr. Sebastián Piñera the President of Chile addressed a remark on the TAO project that this project is highly appreciated in Chile, during the Japan-Chile meeting with Prime Minister Kan in APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Conference) on November 14, 2010. On the next day President Piñera met Prof. Hamada the President of the University of Tokyo, and expressed his considerable expectations and strong supports to the realization of a 6.5m TAO telescope.

Japan-Chile summit meeting

On November 14, 2010, the Prime Minister Naoto Kan and the President of Chile Dr. Sebastián Piñera met in the Japan-Chile summit meeting, where President Piñera is attending APEC held in Japan. In this meeting, President Piñera remarked the TAO project as a symbol of friendship between Japan and Chile, commenting that TAO is highly appreciated in Chile.

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• Home page of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan: Japan-Chile summit meeting

Meeting between the President of Chile and the President of the University of Tokyo

On November 15, 2010, a meeting was held at Imperial Hotel Tokyo between Dr. Sebastián Piñera the President of Chile and Prof. Jyun’ichi Hamada the President of the University of Tokyo. Other attendees in this meeting were Prof. Masasi Maeda a managing director of the University of Tokyo, Prof Yuzuru Yoshii, leading the TAO project, of School of Science, the University of Tokyo, Mr. Alfredo Moreno the minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile, and Mr. Patricio Torres the ambassador of Chile to Japan.

Prof. Hamada mentioned that the University of Tokyo has opened an astronomical observatory at the world-highest-altitude in north-Chile by installing the miniTAO 1m telescope, remarking that this is part of academic exchange with the University of Chile, expressing profound thanks for supports given by the Chilean government and Chilean people, and stated that the University of Tokyo will make further efforts to realize a 6.5m TAO telescope.

President Piñera then addressed that the completion of the miniTAO telescope is highly appreciated as a symbol of academic exchange between the two countries, and expressed considerable expectations from the Chilean government and their strong supports to the realization of a 6.5m TAO telescope.

Prof. Hamada is giving to President Piñera a postal stamp sheet for commemoration of the completion of the miniTAO telescope that was issued by the Chilean postal service (Prof. Hamada, President Piñera, and the foreign minister Moreno from left to right)

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• Home page of the University of Tokyo: A meeting for academic exchange between Prof. Hamada the President of the Univsersity of Tokyo and Dr. Piñera the President of Chile.