Taiwan would express its willingness to be included in negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement launched by the US as a pathway to achieve a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific, former vice president Lien Chan (連戰) said yesterday.
“We would like to let [the nine countries involved in TPP negotiations] know that we would like to participate in the negotiations hereafter to get a better understanding of its content,” Lien said at a press conference ahead of his departure to Hawaii, where he will lead the country’s delegation to the 19th APEC meeting in Honolulu.
Chinese opposition prevents Taiwanese presidents from attending the annual APEC summit, forcing them to name a proxy to attend the meeting in their stead. For four consecutive years, Lien has been dispatched by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) as his special envoy to the annual APEC forum.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
Unlike the previous three years, Lien will be a keynote speaker this year at the CEO summit, the APEC’s premier business event, which usually draws thousands of economic and business leaders from around the region and beyond.
The theme of his speech will be the “global supply chain,” Lien said, adding that he will focus his speech on problems that countries need to plan for in the world economy, and highlight the importance of Taiwan in the global supply chain.
Lien said he “naturally” expected to meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) because he will also hold bilateral talks with leaders from other APEC members.
During an earlier meeting with Hu, whom Lien addressed as secretary-general of the Chinese Communist Party, Lien said he wished to facilitate cross-strait discussions on agreements on trade in goods and services and further trade liberalization following the implementation of the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement and to speed up deadlocked negotiations on a cross-strait investment protection agreement.
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