A delegation led by Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Shen Jong-chin (沈榮津) is heading to Vietnam today to negotiate over damage sustained by Taiwanese businesses during the recent anti-China protests there.
During the planned four-day visit, the delegation is to discuss compensation to investors under the bilateral investment protection agreement both countries signed in 1993, Shen told a press conference at the Executive Yuan.
Shen declined to unveil the list of Vietnamese officials the delegation is to meet with in Hanoi.
Photo: CNA
Executive Yuan spokesperson Sun Lih-chyun (孫立群) said that meetings “were all set up,” but both sides preferred not to disclose the schedule.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs said 224 Taiwanese businesses suffered losses, including 18 whose facilities were set ablaze by rioters, after protests in Vietnam that erupted after China deployed an oil rig near the Paracel Islands (Xisha Islands, 西沙群島), which are claimed by Taiwan, China and Vietnam.
They included 175 in Binh Duong Province, 41 in Dong Nai Province, six in Ho Chi Minh City, one in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province and one in Ha Tinh Province, the ministry said.
Last week, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the government would seek to file a united claim seeking compensation for the damage caused to Taiwan-owned businesses with Japan, South Korea and Singapore because protesters also destroyed some factories owned by their nationals, but Shen said yesterday that Taiwan would talk to Vietnam first.
The delegation is composed of high-ranking officials in charge of investment, taxation, insurance, loans, labor, credit guarantee funds and other areas.
“We hope that we can decide how to meet [Taiwanese investors’] demands to help them get back to normal operation as soon as possible,” Shen said.
Shen said he had talked to several firms in Vietnam recently, and none were considering withdrawing capital from Vietnam, but they hoped that the riots would never recur.
Separately, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday sent a delegation led by KMT Deputy Chairman Tseng Tung-chuan (曾永權) and Legislator Chan Kai-chen (詹凱臣) to offer sympathy to Taiwanese businesspeople in Vietnam and to learn about their needs.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has instructed the delegation to provide Taiwanese investors with assistance to get back to business as soon as possible.
On behalf of the Democratic Progressive Party, Legislator Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) also arrived in Vietnam to offer help yesterday.
Tsai said that he would listen to the needs of Taiwanese businesspeople and urge the government to support them as much as possible.
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
EVA Airways on Saturday said that it had suspended a pilot and opened an investigation after he allegedly lost his temper and punched the first officer several times as their plane was taxiing before takeoff at Los Angeles International Airport. According to a report published on Thursday by The Reporter, the incident occurred after the flight’s Malaysian first officer tried to warn the Taiwanese pilot, surnamed Wen (文), that he was taxiing faster than the speed limit of 30 knots (55.6kph). After alerting the pilot several times without response, the first officer manually applied the brakes in accordance with standard operating
Japanese Councilor Hei Seki (石平) on Wednesday said that he plans to visit Taiwan, saying that would “prove that Taiwan is an independent country and does not belong to China.” Seki, a member of the Japan Innovation Party, was born in Chengdu in China’s Sichuan Province and became a naturalized Japanese in 2007. He was elected to the House of Concilors last year. His views on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) — espoused in a series of books on politics and history — prompted Beijing to sanction him, including barring Seki from traveling to China. Seki wrote on X that he intends
RSS