An overwhelming majority of German companies operating in the nation consider travel restrictions between Taiwan and the EU harmful to their businesses, a survey by the global network of the German Chambers of Commerce Abroad found.
Among the surveys of the chambers’ 140 locations in 92 nations from June 15 to 26, the one in Taiwan found that 90.5 percent of respondents cited travel restrictions as the biggest burden on their operations, the German Trade Office Taipei said on Monday.
Seventy percent of respondents perceived the ban as a major challenge for Taiwan’s economic recovery, the office said in a press release.
Photo: Tony Yao, Taipei Times
“It was with great regret that we have learned about the decision of the European Union not to add Taiwan to the list of safe travel destinations,” German Trade Office Taipei Executive Director Axel Limberg said.
Limberg was referring to Taiwan’s exclusion from the list of nations exempted from the EU’s COVID-19 travel ban that started on Wednesday last week, which included Australia, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea and Thailand from the Asia-Pacific region.
That exclusion might have been due in part to a lack of reciprocity from Taiwan.
China provisionally made the list, but only on condition that Beijing reciprocally grant EU visitors the same right of entry.
Taiwan has barred the entry of most travelers from around the globe, including Europe, as the Central Epidemic Command Center still classifies the whole world under its highest alert level for COVID-19.
The trade office is lobbying the German government to include Taiwan on the list to facilitate bilateral business efforts, Limberg said, adding that lifting travel restrictions is essential for business development.
Given that the EU has started to slowly reopen its borders for business people and travelers, Limberg said that the two sides should “reach a compromise on mutually lifting their travel restrictions.”
In such a case, he was confident that “the right and mutually accepted balance between the protection of public health, the economy and the freedom of travel can be found, and both sides will benefit from it.”
The survey showed that 57.2 percent of German companies in Taiwan expect their revenue to decrease this year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite that, the survey found that German companies remain committed to Taiwan, with 85.7 percent saying that they do not intend to relocate their businesses, while 57.1 percent intend to stick to their investment plans.
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