ROC President Ma Ying-jeou said Sept. 25 that his administration will continue to clear away trade barriers and create conditions for Taiwan’s participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Ma made the remarks while receiving Atul Keshap, senior U.S. official for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum and coordinator for economic policy in the State Department Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, at the Presidential Office in Taipei City.
“The U.S. is our third largest trading partner, while we are your 10th,” Ma said. “The ROC Legislature passed amendments to the Act Governing Food Sanitation in July, settling the U.S. beef dispute in preparation for the resumption of talks under the Taiwan-U.S. Trade and Investment Framework Agreement,” he noted.
“Our negotiations on economic cooperation with Singapore and New Zealand have progressed very smoothly,” the president continued, stressing that he believes once Taiwan signs relevant pacts with the two countries, completes follow-up Cross-Straits Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) talks with mainland China, and progresses in negotiations with the U.S., there will be hope for Taiwan to explore the possibility of joining the TPP.
Keshap said at a luncheon hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei later in the day that U.S. government agencies are working with their Taiwan counterparts “to explore next steps in our bilateral trade dialogue, including with regard to our TIFA talks.”
“An interagency team will be visiting Taiwan next month to conduct expert-level talks on a wide range of trade issues of interest to both sides,” he added.
While noting that the two sides still have a lot of work ahead of them, he said he was confident that “we can work through these complicated and technical issues in a way that makes sense for both sides, drawing on a spirit of cooperation well-rooted in our many decades of friendship and shared prosperity.”
In terms of Taiwan’s desire to take part in the TPP, Keshap pointed out that the nation’s “efforts within APEC have advanced the longer-term cause of trade liberalization in the Asia-Pacific, moving the region closer to the goal of a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific.”
“However, trade liberalization is not a painless process, which is why visionary and sustained leadership will be crucial for any country seeking to participate in the TPP in the future.”
With regard to Taiwan’s membership in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program, Keshap said he shares Taiwan’s great anticipation, which he heard “loud and clear” in his meetings here.
“Liberalizing travel for tourists and business travelers will greatly enhance our already close people-to-people ties, and would send a very strong signal of the strength of our two peoples’ enduring relationship.”
Keshap, tapped by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton for his mission in Taiwan, was accompanied by Raymond Greene and Christopher Beede, directors of the bureau’s Economic Policy and Taiwan Coordination offices, respectively. They were in Taiwan Sept. 23-25. (THN)
Write to Grace Kuo at mlkuo@mofa.gov.tw