Taiwan and the US have concluded negotiations on the first phase of the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade, which is expected to be signed by the two sides in the coming weeks, the Office of Trade Negotiations said yesterday.
The initiative’s First Agreement is comprised of eight chapters and more than 80 articles, and is being called the most detailed trade agreement signed between Taiwan and the US since 1979, when formal bilateral ties were severed.
The office described the document as a milestone that would serve as a crucial “building block” in efforts to negotiate a free-trade agreement between the countries, and shows that Taiwan’s trade system meets high international standards.
Photo: CNA
Unlike standard trade pacts, this initial agreement does not cover tariff reductions or exemptions. It outlines practices and procedures related to a host of topics aimed at streamlining and strengthening trade relations.
The areas covered were customs and trade facilitation, regulatory practices, domestic regulation of services, anti-corruption practices, and small and medium-sized enterprises.
Under the new deal, the two sides have committed to working to facilitate bilateral trade and investment flows, improve regulatory practices, promote anti-corruption measures and minimize unnecessary formalities at the border.
It also establishes a foundation for addressing trade and investment challenges and opportunities.
Most of the provisions offer measures aimed at small, incremental improvements.
For example, on trade facilitation measures, the office said that by using a digital declaration and risk assessment system, goods that meet the criteria, such as products with a short shelf life, would be allowed to clear customs on arrival.
The agreement requires both sides to improve coordination on adopting regulatory practices, including adopting the digitization of paperwork, and taking into account the potential effect of regulations on small and medium-sized enterprises, the office said.
These measures are expected to benefit communications companies, medical equipment manufacturers and pharmaceutical firms, which are subject to strict regulatory standards.
As for anti-corruption practices, the office said that Taiwan and the US introduced guidelines on preventing and combating corruption in all areas affecting trade and investment, which should benefit exporters, contractors that have undertaken projects overseas and private companies that engage in business with government agencies.
Although the First Agreement is seen as a milestone, the Executive Yuan said that at least seven areas remain on the agenda for bilateral negotiations, which it plans to finalize by the end of this year.
These would include issues on labor standards and the environment.
The conclusions reached during future talks would be added to the First Agreement to lay an even more solid foundation, the Executive Yuan said in a statement.
No time frame was given for when the next meeting would be.
“We are glad to see that we can conclude the negotiations over the first five trade agendas in such a short time,” Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua (王美花) told reporters. “This indicates that Taiwan and the US are deepening trade exchanges.”
The US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade was launched on June 1 last year, and two rounds of negotiations have since been held in New York and Taipei, along with several videoconferences.
“This accomplishment represents an important step forward in strengthening the US-Taiwan economic relationship,” US Trade Representative Katherine Tai (戴琪) said in a statement on Thursday.
TAIWAN PROTECTION MEASURE: US Army General Charles Flynn would not say where in the Asia-Pacific the missiles would be sent, but only that they would arrive in 2024 The US is to send medium-range missiles including the Standard Missile 6 (SM-6) and Tomahawk to the Asia-Pacific next year to deter a Chinese attack on Taiwan, US military news Web site Defense One reported. The report cited comments US Army General Charles Flynn made during the annual Halifax International Security Forum on Nov. 19. “We have tested them and we have a battery or two of them today,” Flynn was quoted as saying. “In [20]24. We intend to deploy that system in your region. I’m not going to say where and when. But I will just say that we will
LOYALTY: The 10 active and retired soldiers betrayed the nation and its people by leaking and passing on military secrets to China, the High Prosecutors’ Office said Ten former and current military officers were yesterday indicted on charges of spying for China, including two who allegedly filmed themselves pledging loyalty to Beijing. The High Prosecutors’ Office requested life imprisonment for the suspects in light of the severity of the crime. The 10 active-duty and retired officers included members of the 601st Brigade of the Aviation Special Forces comprising attack helicopter squadrons and elite combat units in charge of defending northern Taiwan, including Taipei. The other suspects came from Huadong Defense Command, in charge of defending the eastern coast; Kinmen Defense Command, in charge of defending Kinmen and Matsu; and one
NO FREE LUNCH: Taiwanese joining the trips to China met TAO and United Front Work officials who urged them to vote for candidates who support closer ties with Beijing The Ciaotou Prosecutors’ Office in Kaohsiung yesterday released two suspects on bail who have been accused of recruiting Taiwanese to join tours to China funded by Beijing and in which they were urged to vote for pan-blue candidates in January’s presidential and legislative elections. The pan-blue camp generally refers to the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), the People First Party, the New Party and the Young China Party, which support closer relations with China. Prosecutors said that a man, surnamed Cheng (鄭), and a woman, surnamed Yeh (葉), who are members of the China Pan-Blue Association, recruited Taiwanese tourists to join tours arranged
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus yesterday slammed a proposal by New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential candidate, to permit a “significant number” of Chinese students to study and work in Taiwan, saying it would be detrimental to young Taiwanese. At an event on Monday hosted by nine major industrial and business groups, Hou said that if elected, he would reinitiate cross-strait dialogue on the premise that Taiwan’s dignity would not be compromised and that the talks would be held in good faith. The talks would include lifting a ban on Chinese tour groups and