Chiang, a former minister of economic affairs who is now director of the National Policy Foundation, was one of the key proponents of the Go South policy. He points out that the policy has to be seen against the background of that time period.
南向政策的關鍵推動者──前經濟部長、現任國家政策發展基金會執行長江丙坤則指出，當年政府推動南向，確有其時代背景。