Taiwan proposed a customs deal with Singapore on the use of a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) system on Thursday, Taiwanese officials said.
The officials, who are attending this year’s APEC forum leadership summit, said that Minister of Finance Lee Sush-der (李述德) proposed the customs cooperation pact with Singapore during a meeting on the sidelines of the summit.
RFID is a generic term used to describe a system that transmits the identity —- in the form of a unique serial number — of an object or person wirelessly, using radio waves. RFID is being used increasingly with biometric technologies for security purposes.
WILLINGNESS
Singaporean officials expressed willingness to consider the cooperation proposal and said they would discuss the issue with other departments, the Taiwanese officials said.
Meanwhile, at a separate press conference held by APEC finance ministers, Lee was asked by foreign reporters to briefly describe his thoughts on the summit.
‘FAMILY’
“We’re a family, we must work together to make the APEC community more prosperous and harmonious,” Lee said.
The regional economic meeting is in Singapore today and tomorrow. Lien Chan (連戰), the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) former chairman, is attending as the envoy of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
Taiwan gained full APEC membership in 1991, making it one of the few major international organizations of which the country is a member.
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