The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) on Saturday denied that trade agreement talks with Singapore had stalled because of diplomatic glitches, as reported in the media.
The Chinese-language United Evening News last week reported that the friendly relations between Taiwan and Singapore had hit an unprecedented snag because of the conduct of some Taiwanese diplomatic personnel stationed in the city-state.
One of the rumors quoted by the paper was that a Taiwanese diplomat had sung the Republic of China national anthem at a public event.
Citing unidentified sources, the report said the diplomatic problems had also affected bilateral talks on the Agreement between Singapore and the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu on Economic Partnership (ASTEP).
The two countries announced in August last year that they would start ASTEP talks.
The paper said Taipei had sought to send presidential adviser and former minister of foreign affairs Ding Mou-shih (丁懋時) to Singapore to resolve the matter, but that the city-state had said he was welcome as a tourist, but not if he came to discuss bilateral relations.
In response, senior ministry officials said they were “surprised” and “baffled” by the report, adding that they had not heard of any glitches in the ASTEP talks.
One of the officials familiar with the ongoing trade talks said the two countries held a round of talks last month on the merchandise trade to be covered under the ASTEP.
“The talks have been proceeding smoothly without any snags as reported in the media,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) also rebutted the report, saying it was “inconsistent with the facts.”
Minister of Foreign Affairs Timothy Yang (楊進添) acknowledged recent communication glitches between the two sides, but added all was going well now.
MOFA said in a statement on its Web site that its personnel stationed in Singapore had worked hard and performed well in carrying out the representative office’s day-to-day affairs and in maintaining regular engagements with Singaporean officials.
ASTEP negotiations have also been proceeding smoothly and the two sides are scheduled to hold a new round of talks on the agreement early next year, it said.
Touting the ASTEP as a high-quality trade accord covering many aspects of bilateral trade, investment, financial market access, tariff reductions, MOFA said it was only natural that it would take time to conclude the pact.
A subsidiary of a Hong Kong-based company that has lost control of two critical ports on the Panama Canal said it is seeking US$2 billion of compensation in damages from Panama over its “illegal” takeover of the ports. Panama Ports Co, a unit of Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison Holdings (長江和記實業), on Friday said in a statement that it is demanding the sum under international arbitration proceedings that it had already started. The Panamanian government last week seized control of the Balboa and Cristobal ports on each end of the Panama Canal, after the country’s Supreme Court declared earlier that a concession allowing
DETERRENCE: With 1,000 indigenous Hsiung Feng II and III missiles and 400 Harpoon missiles, the nation would boast the highest anti-ship missile density in the world With Taiwan wrapping up mass production of Hsiung Feng II and III missiles by December and an influx of Harpoon missiles from the US, Taiwan would have the highest density of anti-ship missiles in the world, a source said yesterday. Taiwan is to wrap up mass production of the indigenous anti-ship missiles by the end of year, as the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology has been meeting production targets ahead of schedule, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said. Combined with the 400 Harpoon anti-ship missiles Taiwan expects to receive from the US by 2028, the nation would have
POSSIBILITIES EMERGE: With Taiwan’s victory and Japan’s narrow win over Australia, Taiwan now have a chance to advance if South Korea also beat the Aussies Taiwan has high hopes that the national baseball team would advance to the World Baseball Classic (WBC) quarter-finals after clinching a crucial 5-4 victory over South Korea in a nail-biting extra-inning game at the Tokyo Dome yesterday. Boosted by three home runs — two solo shots by Yu Chang (張育成) and Cheng Tsung-che (鄭宗哲) and a two-run homer by Stuart Fairchild — the triumph gave Taiwan a much-needed second victory in the five-team Pool C, where only the top two finishers would advance to the knockout stage in Miami, Florida. Entering extra innings with the game tied at four apiece, Taiwan scored
MISSION OF PEACE: The foreign minister urged Beijing to respect Taiwan’s existence as an independent nation, and work together to ensure peace and stability in the region Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) yesterday rejected Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi’s (王毅) comments about Taiwan, criticizing China as a “troublemaker” in the international community and a disruptor of cross-strait peace. Speaking at a news conference on the sidelines of the Chinese National People’s Congress, Wang said that Taiwan has always been a territory of China and that it would be impossible for it to become its own country. The “return” of Taiwan to China was the natural outcome of the Chinese people’s resistance against Japan in World War II, and that any pursuit of independence was “doomed
RSS