The grandson of former US President Franklin Roosevelt, David Roosevelt, is in Taipei to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II. On Tuesday at a memorial event, he said his grandfather viewed Chiang Kai-shek as a close friend.
Mr. Roosevelt said that friendship is why he accepted the invitation to come to Taiwan.
Mr. Roosevelt said, “I did some studying, trying to understand what my grandfather’s feeling toward Chiang Kai-shek at this time, toward the Chinese at this point in history, and it became apparent to me that his feeling for the people of China, and certainly Chiang Kai-shek, whom he considered a friend, a close friend, warranted my certainly accepting this marvelous invitation to come.”
Former US President Eisenhower’s granddaughter, Mary Jean Eisenhower, and former US President Truman’s grandson, Clifton Truman Daniel were also present at the event. The three said they did not receive an invitation from China, and they would still have chosen to come to Taiwan if they did.