ROC President Ma Ying-jeou welcomed June 26 European Parliament support for Taipei in its dispute with Manila over the killing of a Taiwan fisherman during an attack on his boat by a Philippine government vessel.
“We will restore bilateral exchanges as soon as Manila meets our demands for a formal apology, compensation to the victim’s family, cooperative investigation of the incident and punishment of the perpetrators, and commencement of bilateral fisheries talks without delay,” Ma said.
The president made the remarks while accepting a signed statement of support from an EP delegation at the Presidential Office in Taipei City. Led by Ryszard Antoni Legutko, vice chairman of the European Conservatives and Reformists Group, the delegation comprises EP lawmakers Ryszard Czarnecki, Marek Jozef Grobarczyk and Tomasz Piotr Poreba.
In the statement, the group expressed condolences for the May 9 shooting of Hung Shih Cheng in overlapping exclusive economic zones between the two countries.
It is hoped the case will be brought to a satisfactory settlement and both sides can work to prevent similar incidents from happening again in the future, the statement said.
According to Ma, more than 900 international reports on the incident have been published since it took place, the majority of which support Taiwan’s stance and reasonable demands for prompt resolution of the matter.
On Taiwan-EU ties, Ma described them as healthy and said this is reflected by close two-way trade, visa-free treatment for ROC citizens, frequent visits of EP lawmakers, and EU support for expanded bilateral exchanges.
“Taiwan is the EU’s seventh largest trading partner in Asia and 23rd biggest in the world,” Ma said, adding that European firms are the top source of foreign investment for the country.
The president also said the EU is Taiwan’s fourth largest trading partner, a ranking likely to improve if ROC government efforts aimed at taking bilateral economic relations to new heights, such as signing an economic cooperation agreement, bear fruit.
This undertaking is also in line with the government’s commitment to further liberalizing Taiwan trade, according to Ma. The recently concluded Cross-Strait Trade in Services Agreement, 2010’s Cross-Straits Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA), and ECA negotiations with Singapore and New Zealand all illustrate this approach, he said.
Taiwan also held talks with the U.S. under the bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement in March, Ma said, adding that this development is part of his building blocks approach for Taiwan to join trade pacts such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. (RC-JSM)
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