By Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTER
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday emphasized the importance of regional economic integration, calling the phenomenon a “mega trend,” adding that Taiwan must make efforts to prevent being marginalized in the process.
As ASEAN Plus One is scheduled to come into force on Jan. 1, Ma said China was likely to catch up with Japan to become the world’s second-largest economy “by the end of this year” (sic).
“Such a free-trade zone will become one of the world’s largest because of the population of the region and its economic scale, which is second to the EU and North America,” he said in his weekly video address made public yesterday.
“The ASEAN Plus One can create many opportunities for mainland China and an ASEAN countries,” he said.
ASEAN PLUS SIX
From the EU, North America and ASEAN Plus One to ASEAN Plus Two and ASEAN Plus Three, Ma said there could be ASEAN Plus Six in future.
“The regional economy is gradually moving toward the road of integration,” he said. “During the process of integration, Taiwan must avoid being marginalized.”
Ma said that during his stint as Taipei mayor, he was invited to speak at an Eastern Asia Summit in 2003.
The talk was titled “Why Not 10 Plus 4?” he said, adding that at that time he was asking why Taiwan could not become the fourth country to sign a free-trade agreement with ASEAN countries.
REGION
Ma said Taiwan must strengthen its connections with the region and seek business opportunities because it is the right way to go.
As his administration is seeking to sign an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with Beijing, Ma said Taiwan cannot afford to ignore the rise of China.
It is inevitable that Taiwan will develop a closer economic relationship with China while East Asia is seeking economic integration, he said.
“We are doing this not only with the mainland,” he said. “We hope to develop such a relationship with our major trading partners.”
BEGINNINGS
Taiwan began the process with Singapore more than 10 years ago, Ma said, adding that the negotiations did not go well because of China’s suppression and the former Democratic Progressive Party’s insistence on using the title “Taiwan.”
After Taiwan and China sign an ECFA, Ma said he hoped other countries and major trading partners would change their attitude.
The inspection equipment and data transmission system for new robotic dogs that Taipei is planning to use for sidewalk patrols were developed by a Taiwanese company, the city’s New Construction Office said today, dismissing concerns that the China-made robots could pose a security risk. The city is bringing in smart robotic dogs to help with sidewalk inspections, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Ssu-chuan (李四川) said on Facebook. Equipped with a panoramic surveillance system, the robots would be able to automatically flag problems and easily navigate narrow sidewalks, making inspections faster and more accurate, Lee said. By collecting more accurate data, they would help Taipei
STATS: Taiwan’s average life expectancy of 80.77 years was lower than that of Japan, Singapore and South Korea, but higher than in China, Malaysia and Indonesia Taiwan’s average life expectancy last year increased to 80.77 years, but was still not back to its pre-COVID-19 pandemic peak of 81.32 years in 2020, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. The average life expectancy last year increased the 0.54 years from 2023, the ministry said in a statement. For men and women, the average life expectancy last year was 77.42 years and 84.30 years respectively, up 0.48 years and 0.56 years from the previous year. Taiwan’s average life expectancy peaked at 81.32 years in 2020, as the nation was relatively unaffected by the pandemic that year. The metric
TAKING STOCK: The USMC is rebuilding a once-abandoned airfield in Palau to support large-scale ground operations as China’s missile range grows, Naval News reported The US Marine Corps (USMC) is considering new sites for stockpiling equipment in the West Pacific to harden military supply chains and enhance mobility across the Indo-Pacific region, US-based Naval News reported on Saturday. The proposed sites in Palau — one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — and Australia would enable a “rapid standup of stored equipment within a year” of the program’s approval, the report said, citing documents published by the USMC last month. In Palau, the service is rebuilding a formerly abandoned World War II-era airfield and establishing ancillary structures to support large-scale ground operations “as China’s missile range and magazine
A 72-year-old man in Kaohsiung was sentenced to 40 days in jail after he was found having sex with a 67-year-old woman under a slide in a public park on Sunday afternoon. At 3pm on Sunday, a mother surnamed Liang (梁) was with her child at a neighborhood park when they found the man, surnamed Tsai (蔡), and woman, surnamed Huang (黃), underneath the slide. Liang took her child away from the scene, took photographs of the two and called the police, who arrived and arrested the couple. During questioning, Tsai told police that he had met Huang that day and offered to
RSS