Deputy Foreign Minister François Chih-chung Wu attended a reception marking the 95th anniversary of Saudi Arabia’s National Day, Sept. 23 in Taipei City, highlighting warm relations between the countries.
Wu noted that Saudi Arabia is Taiwan’s 17 largest trade partner, adding that last year, bilateral trade volume reached US$9.4 billion; the country is a reliable source of energy supply for Taiwan, accounting for nearly one-third of crude oil imports. Taiwan will continue to work with Saudi Arabia to deepen cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, investment, science and technology, education, agriculture and tourism, and create prosperity and well-being for the people of the two countries.
Mohammed S. A. Alghamdi, new representative of the Saudi Arabia Office in Taipei, stated that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia continues to move towards its ideals under the vision of its national leaders, ushering in an era of sustainability, growth and development and currently ranking among the top 20 economies in the world. Taiwan and Saudi Arabia have had close exchanges over the years and are still currently jointly committed to strengthening economic and cultural cooperation, having recently signed a number of agreements to deepen economic and trade relations.
The two countries have close exchanges and cooperation in many fields and promotion of Taiwan’s industry in the Islamic market is an important policy. In addition, this year's Hajj pilgrimage delegation organized by Chinese Muslim Association and the Taipei Mosque Foundation went to Saudi Arabia and all successfully completed the pilgrimage and other exchanges with the assistance of the MOFA and the Saudi Arabia Trade Office.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to uphold the spirit of mutual benefit, expand bilateral cooperation, deepen friendly exchanges, and promote common development and well-being. (POC-E)
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