Taiwan's accession to the WTO offers the country a window of opportunity to enhance substantive ties with the rest of the world, a visiting former US trade negotiator said yesterday.
"It's a very significant event," said Steve Lande, adjunct professor at Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, when describing Taiwan's WTO accession at a talk held at the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research yesterday afternoon.
Taiwan officially became the 144th member of the world trade body on Jan. 1.
Through "the two primary provisions" -- WTO's most-favored-nation (MFN) provision and the dispute settlement procedure -- Taiwan should be able to greatly improve its image in the international community, Lande said.
"What MFN says is that regardless of your name, your status, regardless of your diplomatic and political relations, regardless of recognition, any member of the WTO is entitled to the same treatment as any other member," Lande said.
The provision is especially significant for Taiwan because of its ambiguous international status, said Lande, who was in charge of two trade negotiations between Taiwan and the US in 1979 prior to the severance of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
The WTO dispute settlement procedure will enable Taiwan to bring a trade dispute to a WTO panel for related review, Lande said.
"Taiwan will be able to bring a case against anybody, including China," Lande said.
The crucial difference between the WTO and its predecessor, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, is the dispute-settlement procedure, which enables those favored by a WTO panel ruling to enforce compliance by imposing economic sanctions if necessary.
Lande, president of Manchester Trade Ltd, an international consulting firm, said the major challenge for Taiwan as a new member lay in its capability to ensure that it meets WTO obligations.
"You've got to conform to WTO regulations and that requires a lot of of work," Lande said.
"The government in Taiwan certainly doesn't want to get the reputation of joining the organization and then violating its rules," Lande said earlier at the American Institute in Taiwan.
When asked to comment on Taiwan's steps to prepare for imports from China, Lande replied: "Imports are not devils."
US Commerce Secretary Don Evans also congratulated Taiwan on its "historic achievement" on Wednesday.
Evans noted in a statement that Taiwan has joined the WTO at a historic moment and that "we look forward to its full participation in future WTO proceedings."
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