Taiwan has submitted an application to join a Pacific trade deal, just days after China sent its own request to become a member of the agreement that was once pushed by Washington as a way to isolate Beijing and solidify US dominance in the region.
The Taiwanese application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) was sent to New Zealand, with a public announcement scheduled for as soon as this morning, a person familiar with the situation said.
New Zealand is the depositary nation for the deal, and is to forward the application to the other 10 nations.
Photo: CNA
The New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not reply to an e-mail requesting comment.
Deputy Minister of Economic Affairs Chen Chern-chyi (陳正祺) yesterday confirmed the Bloomberg report, saying that Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua (王美花) would make a public announcement this morning, the Central News Agency reported.
Taiwan has free-trade deals with two of the members — New Zealand and Singapore — and has been working toward joining the trade agreement for years, with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) making it a key goal for her final term in office.
However, China opposes any move to deal openly with Taiwan, which would make discussions between Beijing, Taipei and the 11 member nations difficult.
Tsai’s government has made building support among democratic allies in the region a crucial part of its efforts to counter rising pressure from Beijing.
This has included closer ties with CPTPP members such as Australia, which is in the midst of a trade dispute with China, and Japan, which is a key trading partner and the largest economy in the CPTPP.
Last month, lawmakers from Japan’s ruling party backed Taiwan’s entry into the deal.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique