South Korean Representative to Taiwan Chung Byung-won said he has been taking a more systematic approach to the exchanges between the two sides since taking up his post in December last year.
Chung made the remarks during an interview with the Central News Agency.
The two countries have always had close economic, trade and tourism ties, he said, adding that bilateral exchanges are expected to increase following the inauguration of new South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol.
Photo: CNA
Taiwan and South Korea are each other’s fifth-largest trading partners, with bilateral trade reaching US$50.76 billion last year for annual growth of 41.98 percent, he said, citing government data.
The travel volume between the two countries was 2.5 million people before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019, with each side being the other’s third-largest source of international tourists, Chung said.
South Korea and Taiwan are global leaders in the semiconductor industry, the former known for its high-quality memory chips, and the latter for its OEM and ODM products, he said.
South Korea and Taiwan are not only competitors in the global semiconductor industry, but are also close partners with complementary strengths, Chung said.
For instance, semiconductor-related products account for 44 percent of South Korea’s exports to Taiwan and 67 percent of Taiwan’s exports to South Korea, he said, citing data from last year.
Against this backdrop, Chung said that one of his priorities is to create a more systematic approach to supporting the ties between the two sides.
To that end, Seoul and Taipei signed a reciprocal driver’s license agreement in February, with immediate effect, to make driving easier for visitors on each side, he said.
Following the signing of a double taxation agreement in November last year, the two sides are now in talks on a potential financial cooperation pact, he said.
Those efforts are aimed at building systematic and structural support for closer bilateral exchanges on all fronts, he added.
With the expected easing of border controls in the second half of this year, Chung said he is hoping that travel between the two nations will return to pre-pandemic levels.
Chung said his office is also planning to hold a fashion show in Taipei in November, which would highlight traditional Korean clothing known as hanbok.
Next year, on the 30th anniversary of the Korean Mission in Taipei, a cultural week would be organized to celebrate the milestone, he said.
The 58-year-old said he has come to love the mountains of Taiwan, adding that he is planning a four-day climb next month to Yushan (玉山), Taiwan’s highest peak.
Seven of the 17 NT$10 million (US$311,604) winning receipts from the November-December uniform invoice lottery remain unclaimed as of today, the Ministry of Finance said, urging winners to redeem their prizes by May 5. The reminder comes ahead of the release of the winning numbers for the January-February lottery tomorrow. Among the unclaimed receipts was one for a NT$173 phone bill in Keelung, while others were for a NT$5,913 purchase at Costco in Taipei's Neihu District (內湖), a NT$49 purchase at a FamilyMart in New Taipei City's Tamsui District (淡水), and a NT$500 purchase at a tea shop in New Taipei City's
Taiwanese officials were shown the first of 66 F-16V fighter jets purchased by Taiwan from the United States, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday, adding the aircraft has completed an initial flight test and is expected to be delivered later this year. A delegation led by Deputy Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) visited Lockheed Martin’s F-16 C/D Block 70 (also known as F-16V) assembly line in South Carolina on March 16 to view the aircraft. The jet will undergo a final acceptance flight in the US before being delivered to Taiwan, the
The New Taipei Metro's Sanyin Line and the eastern extension of the Taipei Metro's Tamsui-Xinyi Line (Red Line) are scheduled to begin operations in June, the National Development Council said today. The Red Line, which terminates at Xiangshan Station, would be connected by the 1.4km extension to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, while the Sanyin Line would link New Taipei City's Tucheng and Yingge stations via Sanxia District (三峽). The council gave the updates at a council meeting reviewing progress on public construction projects for this year. Taiwan's annual public infrastructure budget would remain at NT$800 billion (US$25.08 billion), with NT$97.3
TALENT SCOUTING: The university is investing substantial funds in its future to bring in the kind of researchers that would keep the college internationally competitive National Taiwan University (NTU) plans to invest NT$2 billion (US$62.6 million) to launch two programs aimed at attracting and retaining top research talent, university president Chen Wen-chang (陳文章) said yesterday. The funding would support the “Palm Grove Scholars Project,” which targets academics aged 40 to 55. Up to 20 scholars would be selected, each receiving as much as NT$10 million annually, Chen said. The initiative is designed to attract leading researchers to Taiwan and strengthen NTU’s global competitiveness by fostering a more research-friendly environment and expanding international collaboration, he said. NTU is also introducing a “Hong Hu” chair grant, which would provide Palm
RSS