President Tsai Ing-wen said April 9 that Taiwan and the U.K. share a deep and abiding friendship, adding that she looks forward to more frequent and comprehensive exchanges aimed at further boosting mutually beneficial cooperation.
According to Tsai, strong ties are reflected in the robust economic and trade relationship, with the U.K. Taiwan’s leading investment destination in Europe and third-largest investment partner. Bilateral dialogue and interactions are also becoming more frequent, she said, citing the almost 100,000 visitors traveling between the two countries each year and the fact that the U.K. is the second most popular destination for local students studying abroad.
Tsai made the remarks while receiving Graham Stuart, U.K. parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Department for International Trade, at the Office of the President in Taipei City.
The president said that economic and trade activities and collaboration are on an upswing, as evidenced by the announcement at the annual Taiwan-U.K. Trade Talks in London last year of new and regular dialogues in agriculture, financial services and renewable energy.
With the U.K. gearing up for the post-Brexit era, Tsai said the two sides can work to upgrade the overall bilateral relationship and explore business opportunities. British enterprises have expressed interest in expanding trade and investment in sectors including railways and those identified for strategic promotion in the government’s five-plus-two innovative industries initiative, she added.
The economic revitalization program targets the five high-growth sectors of biotech and pharmaceuticals, green energy, national defense, smart machinery and Internet of Things, as well as the promotion of two concepts: the circular economy and a new paradigm for agricultural development.
According to Tsai, the two sides have already built a strong foundation for cooperation in green technologies and smart city development through extensive discussions at such platforms as the Taiwan-U.K. Renewable Energy Roundtable Meeting.
Following his meeting at the Office of the President, Stuart concluded a memorandum of understanding with Minister of Economic Affairs Shen Jong-chin in marine turbine engineering and production for offshore wind power. The pact is expected to further the ministry’s goal of generating 5.5 gigawatts of offshore capacity by 2025 as well as spur the development of a homegrown supply chain in related technologies.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, two-way trade between Taiwan and the U.K. reached US$5.75 billion last year, while accumulated investment in Taiwan from the U.K. totaled US$9.17 billion between 1952 and 2017. (SFC-E)
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