The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the Republic of China (ROC) and Panama is still effective as no notification of termination has been received, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said.
The ministry made the statement on Wednesday in response to a report on Chinese-language online news platform Up Media on Tuesday quoting Panamanian Minister of the Presidency Alvaro Aleman as saying the FTA has become invalid.
The two nations severed official ties in June last year after more than a century of diplomatic relations.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
Taiwan assumed that its FTA with Panama would remain in force until the two sides reach a new consensus on bilateral trade relations or strike a new deal.
Taiwan adheres to treaties and fulfills its international obligations in accordance with international law, ministry spokesman Andrew Lee (李憲章) said.
According to the basic principles of international law, unless the existence of diplomatic relations is necessary for the enforcement of a treaty, the severance of diplomatic relations by the parties involved does not affect the validity of the treaty, Lee said.
Moreover, the accord in question includes a “termination” article, which states that termination of the agreement shall enter into force 180 days after notification to the other party, Lee said.
As the government has yet to receive an official notification from Panama to end the agreement, it is believed that the FTA is still effective, he added.
Asked if the rights of Taiwanese businesses would be affected should Panama decide to abort the agreement, Lee said that further verification would be conducted and international law would be followed to safeguard the legal rights of Taiwanese.
Minister Without Portfolio John Deng (鄧振中), the nation’s top trade negotiator, agreed, saying that Panama has “never notified us” about terminating the agreement.
Taiwan imports a significant amount of shrimp from Panama,while Taiwan sells many goods to Panama, Deng said, adding that, as of now, there have been no reports of the rights of Taiwanese businesspeople being affected.
“Everything is OK,” Deng added.
Bilateral trade between Taiwan and Panama in the first two months of this year totaled US$25.6 million, with Taiwan exporting US$20.4 million in goods to Panama, while importing US$5.2 million worth of products from Panama, data from the Bureau of Trade Web site showed.
The Taipei Summer Festival is to begin tomorrow at Dadaocheng Wharf (大稻埕), featuring four themed firework shows and five live music performances throughout the month, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said today. The festival in the city’s Datong District (大同) is to run until Aug. 30, holding firework displays on Wednesdays and the final Saturday of the event. The first show is scheduled for tomorrow, followed by Aug. 13, 20 and 30. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Disney Pixar's movie Toy Story, the festival has partnered with Walt Disney Co (Taiwan) to host a special themed area on
BE CAREFUL: The virus rarely causes severe illness or death, but newborns, older people and those with medical conditions are at risk of more severe illness As more than 7,000 cases of chikungunya fever have been reported in China’s Guangdong Province this year, including 2,892 new cases last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday said it is monitoring the situation and considering raising the travel notice level, which might be announced today. The CDC issued a level 1 travel notice, or “watch,” for Guangdong Province on July 22, citing an outbreak in Foshan, a manufacturing hub in the south of the province, that was reported early last month. Between July 27 and Saturday, the province reported 2,892 new cases of chikungunya, reaching a total of 7,716
STAY VIGILANT: People should reduce the risk of chronic liver inflammation by avoiding excessive alcohol consumption, smoking and eating pickled foods, the physician said A doctor last week urged people to look for five key warning signs of acute liver failure after popular producer-turned-entertainer Shen Yu-lin (沈玉琳) was reportedly admitted to an intensive care unit for fulminant hepatitis. Fulminant hepatitis is the rapid and massive death of liver cells, impairing the organ’s detoxification, metabolic, protein synthesis and bile production functions, which if left untreated has a mortality rate as high as 80 percent, according to the Web site of Advancing Clinical Treatment of Liver Disease, an international organization focused on liver disease prevention and treatment. People with hepatitis B or C are at higher risk of
FINE PRINT: Parents should carefully evaluate offers from cram schools that are designed to lower the amount they have to refund later, a New Taipei City official said New Taipei City Consumer Protection Office Director Wang Chih-yu (王治宇) urged parents to check contract content and institutional operations before sending children to cram schools, enrichment classes or day care centers during summer vacation. Closures and refund problems most commonly occur in cram schools, especially language cram schools, many of which have been facing difficulties due to the popularity of online learning apps and studying abroad, Wang said. Cram schools that closed due to financial issues were often unable to refund tuition fees, he said. Under Article 24 of the Rules for the Establishment and Management of Short-term Supplementary Learning Centers (短期補習班設立及管理準則), cram
RSS