Guatemala City, May 30 (CNA) Republic of China President Ma Ying-jeou told his host, Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom Caballeros, Saturday that Taiwan would like to help Guatemala conserve its historic relics.

“Conserving historic relics or sites is a mammoth engineering task that takes a long time to complete, ” Ma said during a dinner party held in Guatemala City, adding that the ROC government would like to extend a helping hand if necessary.

Ma and his wife Chow Mei-ching hosted the dinner party to thank Colom for his nation’s hospitality during their three-day visit to Guatemala — one of Taiwan’s 23 diplomatic allies.

Earlier in the day, the Taiwan first couple visited the Tikal area, where they viewed the country’s most prominent Mayan ruins, which are a living testimony to a culture that flourished there between 700 BC and 900 AD.

Ma and Colom released a joint statement the previous day reiterating that they will continue efforts to promote bilateral ties and cooperation in a wide range of fields.

Ma and his 158-member entourage will depart Sunday for El Salvador, where they will attend the June 1 inauguration of President-elect Mauricia Funes.

El Salvador is the last leg of Ma’s 10-day, three-nation diplomatic tour of Central America that also has taken him to Belize.

Ma and his entourage are scheduled to return to Taiwan June 4. (By Huang Juei-hung and Deborah Kuo)