The EU would not rule out the possibility of signing a bilateral investment agreement (BIA) with Taiwan, even though it observes a “one China” policy, a European Commission official said on Tuesday.
The EU in 2015 included Taiwan in its list of trade partners for BIAs, but has not held negotiations on the issue since then, except to state in a trade policy report in September 2017 that it was preparing to hold investment talks with Taipei.
HEARING
At a public hearing on EU-Taiwan trade relations held by the European Parliament Committee on International Trade, Peter Berz, head of relations with the Far East in the European Commission Directorate-General for Trade, was asked by a lawmaker if the reluctance to negotiate an agreement was the result of pressure from China.
Although the EU adheres to a “one China” policy, it would not rule out the possibility of forging such an accord with Taiwan, Berz said, adding that any such talks would require approval from the commission.
A joint panel set up by the two sides to address the issue has convened five times to date, which has helped the EU and Taiwan acquire deeper knowledge of each other’s investment policies, Berz said.
The public hearing was also attended by Bureau of Foreign Trade Director-General Yang Jen-ni (楊珍妮) and European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan chief executive Freddie Hoglund.
The EU is Taiwan’s largest source of foreign capital and its fifth-largest trade partner, while Taiwan is the EU’s sixth-largest trade partner in Asia, Ministry of Economic Affairs data showed.
FRIENDSHIP
In a news release yesterday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it welcomed the hearing — the first ever held at the EU on the issue.
“Since 2015 ... the European Parliament has passed three resolutions supporting the signing of a Taiwan-EU bilateral investment agreement. This public hearing once again underscores its friendship and support to Taiwan,” it said, urging the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, to take concrete action to push for the inking of a BIA.
Additional reporting by Stacy Hsu
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
ENHANCING EFFICIENCY: The apron can accommodate 16 airplanes overnight at Taoyuan airport while work on the third runway continues, the transport minister said A new temporary overnight parking apron at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is to start operating on Friday next week to boost operational efficiency while the third runway is being constructed, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday. The apron — one of the crucial projects in the construction of the third runway — can accommodate 16 aircraft overnight at the nation’s largest international airport, Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) told reporters while inspecting the new facility yesterday morning. Aside from providing the airport operator with greater flexibility in aircraft parking during the third runway construction,
American climber Alex Honnold is to attempt a free climb of Taipei 101 today at 9am, with traffic closures around the skyscraper. To accommodate the climb attempt and filming, the Taipei Department of Transportation said traffic controls would be enforced around the Taipei 101 area. If weather conditions delay the climb, the restrictions would be pushed back to tomorrow. Traffic controls would be in place today from 7am to 11am around the Taipei 101 area, the department said. Songzhi Road would be fully closed in both directions between Songlian Road and Xinyi Road Sec 5, it said, adding that bidirectional traffic controls would
RSS