President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday urged APEC members to collaborate on alternative ways of presenting their year of hard work after the Chilean government on Wednesday announced that it was withdrawing as host of this month’s APEC summit.
Tsai expressed regret over the summit’s cancelation at a meeting with Brookings Institution senior research fellow Richard Bush at the Presidential Office in Taipei.
APEC is an important platform for dialogue on international economics and the “most important international organization” that Taiwan participates in, Tsai said, urging members to come together and adopt “remedial measures” so that they might still present their work from the past year.
Photo: Taipei Times
Tsai said that she has instructed government agencies to continue multilateral, ministerial-level talks.
Taiwan needs to showcase its strengths and make contributions, especially in terms of the digital opportunities that APEC has long been pushing, she said.
“Whether or not the summit is held, Taiwan must continue to enthusiastically participate internationally,” Tsai said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement late on Wednesday night that it had been officially informed by the Chilean government about the cancelation of the APEC summit and this year’s UN Climate Change Conference, also known as COP25.
Chilean President Sebastian Pinera cited ongoing protests as the reason for canceling the two conferences. The APEC summit was to take place on Nov. 16 and 17, and COP25 from Dec. 2 to 13.
The ministry understands that the Chilean government was forced to make a difficult decision due to instability in the country, ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said, adding that Taiwan regrets the development, but hopes that Chile can restore stability soon.
As a responsible APEC member, Taiwan has always valued the group’s meetings and events, and participated enthusiastically, Ou said, adding that Taiwan recognizes Chile’s achievements as the host of all the APEC events held so far this year.
Taiwan would remain in touch with the Chilean government and the APEC Secretariat to closely monitor developments and cooperate with any arrangements, Ou added.
The summit would have been an important opportunity for Taiwan to gain international exposure, given that APEC is one of the few global organizations that Taiwan can participate in with formal membership, said Charles Chou (周子欽), deputy director of the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research’s Department of International Affairs.
Having been appointed as the nation’s APEC envoy, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co founder Morris Chang (張忠謀) was expected to interact with US President Donald Trump and other global leaders, Chou said, who also expressed regret over the cancelation.
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