The two, who were in El Salvador to attend the Salvadoran presidential inauguration, met Sunday at a state banquet hosted by outgoing President Antonio Saca, during which Ma shared a table with Clinton.

The encounter drew much media attention because the governments of Taiwan and the United States have had no formal contact since diplomatic ties were severed in 1979, which means that meetings between high-level officials of the two countries are rare.

A similar encounter in 2003 in Panama between then President Chen Shui-bian and then U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell was considered by Chen's administration as a breakthrough in Taiwan-U.S.

relations.

Asked about the issue during a casual gathering with Taiwanese media at his hotel, Ma said he would not play up such "courtesy encounters" as they are very common in diplomatic settings.

According to the president, progress in relations between Taiwan and the United States is unlikely to be achieved through such occasional meetings.

As to his use of the designation "the president of Taiwan" to introduce himself to Clinton, Ma explained that the name "Taiwan" is commonly known to represent "the Republic of China" and is widely used when convenient.

He stressed that the reference does not change the country's official name or his status as "the president of the Republic of China." On his current Central America visit, Ma said the success of his policy to improve relations between Taiwan and China and to adopt a moderate, flexible approach in promoting foreign relations over the past year was validated.

Ma said he discovered during the visit that Taiwan's allies in the region are in favor of such a policy, which he added has greatly increased his confidence.

According to Ma, while Taiwan is working to consolidate its relations with its diplomatic allies, it does not oppose their attempts to develop unofficial relations with China that are based mainly on economic and trade activities.

Pledging to continue Taiwan's aid to its diplomatic allies, Ma said such assistance will be provided in the form of technical assistance, instead of cash donations or loans, in order to produce the best results.

El Salvador is the final leg of Ma's three-nation Central America visit that has also taken him to Belize and Guatemala.

He is scheduled to depart El Salvador June 2 and return to Taiwan June 4 via Seattle after an overnight stopover there.

(By Huang Jui-hung and Y.F. Low)