Minister Without Portfolio John Deng (鄧振中) yesterday joined the trade ministers of 20 other APEC member states in a virtual conference and called for disease prevention materials to be exchanged through bilateral agreements.
APEC has 21 members, including Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Japan, Russia, South Korea, New Zealand and the US. Taiwan joined the organization under the name “Chinese Taipei.”
The Virtual APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting was chaired by Malaysian Minister of International Trade and Industry Mohamed Azmin Ali, APEC said in a news release yesterday.
Photo provided by the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations
Yesterday’s meeting focused on how to maintain free and open trade and investment mechanisms amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations said in a news release.
While the 21 members are in eight different time zones, the countries’ ministers still joined the important discussion, it said.
During the meeting, Deng highlighted Taiwan’s outstanding performance in controlling the pandemic, saying that the nation still had a GDP growth rate of 1.6 percent despite the pandemic.
Without locking down cities or suspending classes and business operations, Taiwan did not report large-scale community infections, he said.
Over the past few months, Taiwan has been able to operate normally, and had the capacity to provide other countries with medical supplies, showing that “Taiwan can help,” he added.
Nonetheless, no single country can claim itself a “winner” when is comes to the pandemic, Deng said.
Taiwan is happy to boost cooperation with other countries to tackle future challenges, he said.
Protecting people’s health should be a principle that is prioritized, and after that, governments should manage to maintain the circulation of critical materials, he said.
The trade ministers issued a joint statement after the virtual meeting.
“We acknowledge the importance of a free, open, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent and predictable trade and investment environment to drive economic recovery at such a challenging time,” the statement on APEC’s Web site read.
“We are committed to ensure that emergency measures designed to tackle COVID-19 are targeted, proportionate, transparent, temporary, do not create unnecessary barriers to trade or disruption to global supply chains, and are consistent with WTO rules,” it said.
The ministers also highlighted the need to establish a digital platform for information exchange and the needs to empower all sectors of the community, including micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, while reiterating their concern about the pandemic’s impact on vulnerable developing economies.
They also issued a declaration on facilitating the flow of essential goods, which included that emergency trade measures designed to tackle COVID-19 must be consistent with WTO rules and that member economies are expected to abide by the International Health Regulations of 2005.
Additional reporting by Lin Chia-nan
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday expressed “grave concerns” after Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) reiterated the city-state’s opposition to “Taiwanese independence” during a meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強). In Singapore on Saturday, Wong and Li discussed cross-strait developments, the Singaporean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “Prime Minister Wong reiterated that Singapore has a clear and consistent ‘one China’ policy and is opposed to Taiwan independence,” it said. MOFA responded that it is an objective fact and a common understanding shared by many that the Republic of China (ROC) is an independent, sovereign nation, with world-leading
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
DEFENDING FREEDOM: Taiwanese love peace and helping others, and hope to be a positive force in the world, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim told ‘Weltspiegel’ Taiwan is making every effort to prevent war in the face of China’s hybrid coercion tactics and military threats, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) said in an interview with German public broadcaster ARD’s program Weltspiegel that aired on Monday. Taiwan is not seeking provocation or intending to disrupt international order, but “must possess the capacity for self-defense,” a news release issued by the Presidential Office yesterday quoted her as saying. Taiwan is closely watching not only the increasing scope and frequency of Chinese military exercises around the nation, but also Beijing’s hybrid and cognitive warfare tactics, including manipulating public opinion, fostering
RSS