ROC President Ma Ying-jeou said his administration is striving to create the conditions for Taiwan to secure entry into the Trans-Pacific Partnership within the next decade.
“Joining the TPP is an integral part of my golden decade blueprint that ensures Taiwan is included in regional economic integration,” Ma said Nov. 14 during a meeting with business representatives from the local computer sector at the Presidential Office in Taipei.
According to Ma, regional integration is a fact of life and increasingly important for export-driven economies such as Taiwan’s. “The Cross-Straits Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement [ECFA] is a good beginning, but there is still a long way to go before Taiwan can sign broader trade pacts with its major partners,” he added.
Although Taiwan is not ready to bid for TPP membership at this point, Ma said, the government is approaching the matter in a pragmatic and step-by-step fashion.
Echoing Ma’s remarks, Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-shiang said the first step in this process is conducting an in-depth study on the merits of the TPP.
“Current TPP members vary widely in their degree of trade liberalization,” Shih said. “We have to look at the possible impact of TPP membership on local sectors and continue canvassing support for Taiwan’s inclusion.”
The TPP is a proposed trade agreement between Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the United States. It is envisaged that the trade agreement will be a structure on to which other nations such as Taiwan, Japan and South Korea could be bolted.
At this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Meeting in Honolulu, the TPP was singled out for praise by U.S. President Barrack Obama. He said that America wants to sign the “next-generation” trade agreement with nine Asia-Pacific nations by the end of 2012.
Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda also said he will seek to join discussions on the TPP, describing the pact as an opportunity to tap the growth potential and power of the Asia-Pacific region. (JSM)
Write to Meg Chang at meg.chang@mail.gio.gov.tw