President Lai Ching-te received a bipartisan U.S. House of Representatives delegation at the Presidential Office May 27 in Taipei City, pledging to jointly build democratic supply chains to strengthen bilateral economic partnerships while collaboratively safeguarding regional peace.
Led by Bruce Westerman, a member of the Congressional Taiwan Caucus and chair of the House's Natural Resources Committee, the group included bipartisan House members Celeste Maloy, Harriet Hageman, Nick Begich and Sarah Elfreth.
In his remarks, Lai noted that Taiwan and the U.S. have laid a solid foundation for cooperation in agriculture, fishing industry, economy, energy, environmental protection and sustainable development, adding that the U.S. has become Taiwan’s largest overseas investment location, accounting for over 40 percent of the nation’s overall foreign investment whereas Taiwan is U.S.’s seventh-largest trade partner and the seventh-largest export destination for U.S. agricultural products.
Earlier this month, 138 domestic enterprises attended the SelectUSA Investment Summit, becoming the largest overseas team to join the event, the president added.
Faced with the rapidly changing international conditions, Taiwan would continue to increase procurements from the U.S., including agricultural products, industrial commodities, natural gas and petroleum, which would facilitate a more balanced bilateral trade relationship while enhancing Taiwan’s economic, energy and trade resilience, Lai said.
Additionally, the president expressed his gratitude to the U.S. government for its continued arms sales to support Taiwan’s enhancement of self-defense capabilities.
In response, Westerman pointed out natural resources, including energy and minerals, are the foundation of economic development, and indicated that his country, home to abundant agricultural products, is enthusiastic about sharing its resources. He further voiced appreciation to Taiwan for making investments in the U.S. and voiced hope of deepening cooperation to promote mutual economic growth and prosperity, the Presidential Office concluded. (POC-E)
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