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U.S. agrees to strengthen trade relations with
Taiwan
Attention focused on degree of opposition from China
U.S.
agrees to strengthen trade relations with Taiwan…
Attention focused on degree of
opposition from China
First visible achievement of
the
U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on 21st
Century Trade
On
May 18 (local time), the U.S. revealed that it had agreed to strengthen trade
relations with Taiwan, a plan which the Joe Biden Administration had presented
last year.
According
to Bloomberg, U.S. Trade Representative Catherine Tai released a statement on
the same day, saying that the U.S. and Taiwan had made an important first step
towards strengthening economic relations.
Tai
explained that with this agreement, it was expected that simplification of
tariff procedure, improvement of regulations and reduction of logistical time
would eliminate red tape and facilitate border procedure, so that U.S.
companies could approach the Taiwanese market rapidly at low cost.
She
emphasized that negotiations will continue in the future, so that they would be
able to reach a trade agreement that is solid and of high standards, capable of
meeting the economic challenges of the 21st century.
The
U.S. is seeking a cooperation plan in the economic sector by building a
separate channel through the U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century
Trade with Taiwan, which was excluded from the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework,
in which 13 countries of the Indo-Pacific region participated.
The U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on
21st Century Trade was announced in June of last year by the Biden
Administration. It does not deal with issues such as tariffs, and is not an
official Free Trade Agreement, but aims for strengthening trade relations with
Taiwan.
Through
this, the U.S. is discussing issues such as money laundering, strengthening of
protection of whistle-blowers, and rejection of country entry of foreign
officials. In addition, it is demanding
from Taiwan tax policies to promote investment in advanced U.S. technology such
as semiconductors.
With the announcement of the
U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century Trade last year, China warned
that any movement to formalize relations with Taiwan was a challenge against
the uncomfortable situation surrounding Taiwan, and also revealed its
discomfort about this recent agreement with the U.S.
The Chinese Embassy in
Washington D.C. said on this day that countries could not engage in
negotiations that could influence the official position or sovereignty of
Taiwan, or could give wrong signals to Taiwanese separatists under the pretext
of trade and economic interaction.
Bloomberg reported that the
announcement of this agreement came only several hours after the announcement
of the plan for China’s Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao to visit the U.S., and
noted that eyes are on how China was going to respond as it is sensitive to the
issue of Taiwan.
Previously, the Chinese
Embassy in Washington D.C. said in an online press briefing that Minister Wang
is to visit the U.S. next week, and will meet with Commerce Secretary Gina
Raimondo and Trade Representative Catherine Tai, with specific plans currently
under discussion.
After meeting with Secretary
Raimondo next week in Washington, Minister Wang will participate in the APEC
Trade Ministers’ Meeting to be held in Detroit, and plans to meet with
Representative Tai.
(Provided by Yonhap News)
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