The 2017 Asia-Pacific Culture Day wrapped up Sept. 24 at Taipei Main Station, with over 100,000 participants taking part in the two-day event designed to foster cultural exchanges between the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the country’s diplomatic allies and partners in the Asia-Pacific region.
Speaking at the start of the event, Premier Lai Ching-te said that culture is a manifestation of a people’s collective wisdom, and that the festival is an amazing opportunity for local people to better understand the nations of the Asia-Pacific. He added that the annual event can also help lay a firm foundation for future collaboration between Taiwan and countries in the region, in line with the government’s New Southbound Policy.
Echoing the premier’s remarks, Minister of Foreign Affairs David Tawei Lee noted that, in addition to deepening ties between Taiwan and its partners in the Asia-Pacific, the festival works to enrich the country’s cultural diversity. He said cultural diplomacy and exchanges play a vital role in fostering mutual understanding between different peoples.
Organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the event showcases the arts, culture, cuisines, dance and music of six of ROC diplomatic allies—Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, the Marshall Islands, the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu—and 19 other Asia-Pacific countries. This year’s cultural festival also featured performances by Taiwan’s International Youth Ambassadors, who recently returned from visits to several South and Southeast Asian nations.
Six of the nation’s cities, namely Kaohsiung and Tainan in southern Taiwan, Taichung in central Taiwan, and Taipei, Taoyuan and New Taipei in northern Taiwan, in addition to the northern county of Hsinchu, were represented at the festival. The MOFA noted that each of these areas’ local governments have signed friendship or sister city agreements with municipalities in New Southbound Policy target countries.
A key plank of President Tsai Ing-wen’s national development strategy, the initiative seeks to deepen Taiwan’s links with the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations member states, six South Asian countries, Australia and New Zealand in the realms of agriculture, business, culture, education, tourism and trade. (CPY-E)
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