Taiwan is interested in forging closer ties with the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement (TPP) countries, but talks are still in the initial stage, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
“Feasibility studies must take place before any further discussions can be held,” said Ger Bau-shuan (葛葆萱), deputy director-general of the Department of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.
The TPP is a multilateral regional trade agreement currently comprising Chile, Brunei, Singapore and New Zealand. Ger said all APEC member states are allowed to join, including Taiwan.
In December, US Trade Representative (USTR) Ron Kirk notified Congress that US President Barack Obama intended to enter into negotiations with the TPP to shape a broad-based regional pact.
Such an agreement would help expand US exports, saving and creating good jobs here in the US, the USTR said.
The first round of negotiations between the US and the TPP is scheduled for next month.
At the moment, Taiwan is excluded from ASEAN, another major regional economic integrated entity.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has repeatedly touted plans to sign an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China, saying it would facilitate Taiwan’s signing of free-trade agreements (FTA) with ASEAN members and other countries.
“It is a fact that the current cross-strait detente has created a more amiable atmosphere for Taiwan to approach other countries on the subject of free trade agreement. Things are looking up,” ministry spokesman Henry Chen (陳銘政) said.
Meanwhile, in a recent interview with an Indian publication, Asia Age, Taiwanese Representative to India Ong Wen-chyi (翁文琪) said a Taiwan-India FTA was a definite possibility and both sides were conducting feasibility studies on the issue.
Both sides have held three rounds of discussions on Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) and the pact could be inked as early as end of this year, he said, adding that signing the pact could help accelerate progress on other issues such as trade and investment, as well as an FTA.
Taiwan’s yearly trade volume with India stands at US$5.9 billion, Ger said.
In other developments, the ministry yesterday rejected a Democratic Progressive Party lawmaker’s (DPP) claim that Indonesia had banned all made-in-Taiwan fishing vessels because of Beijing’s interference.
On Wednesday, DPP Lawmaker Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said China had been putting pressure on Indonesia via ASEAN to stop purchasing Taiwanese boats.
Kuan said the action had seriously harmed Taiwan’s shipbuilding industry because since Taiwan’s fisheries’ industry has shrunk, the industry now relies on Indonesia and other Southeast Asian counties for orders.
Speaking at the regular weekly briefing, Ger said the ministry had summoned Indonesian Representative Suhartono to explain immediately after the lawmaker’s claim.
On Wednesday, Suhartono reportedly told the ministry that since Taiwan and Indonesia are WTO members, Jakarta would not take any discriminatory actions, such as stopping its fishermen from buying Taiwan-made fishing vessels.
However, to protect its fishing market and tighten up the country’s maritime management and surveillance work, the Indonesian government has enacted a policy under which only foreign companies or Indonesian fishing companies with foreign shareholders are allowed to purchase used foreign-made fishing boats.
The policy is comprehensive and does not single out any country, said Ger, adding that new fishing vessels are not included in the new rule.
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