Taiwan and Montana can both benefit from deeper partnerships in key industries, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday told Montana Governor Greg Gianforte, who expressed optimism regarding cooperation between his state and Taiwan.
Gianforte, who is leading an economic and trade delegation to Taiwan for six days ending on Friday, met with Tsai at the Presidential Office.
Tsai thanked him for reopening the State of Montana Asia Trade Office in Taiwan after becoming governor in 2021, saying it was a concrete move that helped the two sides continue to reinforce bilateral economic and trade cooperation.
Photo: CNA
Taiwan and Montana have long enjoyed close cooperation in agriculture and tourism, as large numbers of Taiwanese tourists visit the state every year and agricultural goods from Montana are popular among Taiwanese consumers, she said.
Montana is known for its auto electronics and photonics industries, and is developing its biotechnology, cloud computing and aerospace industries, Tsai said.
Gianforte’s efforts in promoting tax incentives and deregulation have created job opportunities and stimulated investment, she said.
As Montana’s seventh-largest trade partner, Taiwan hopes to deepen partnerships in key areas such as auto electronics, photonics and semiconductors, she said.
Tsai also thanked the Montana Senate and House of Representatives for passing Taiwan-friendly resolutions in support of the nation’s international participation.
Gianforte said that the state legislature passes resolutions in support of Taiwan every two years to “reinforce” its ties with the nation.
Montana “has shared a strong bond with Taiwan” since they established a sister-state relationship in 1985, he said.
“It’s only fitting that I lead my first international trade mission as governor to this great country” two years after the reopening of its trade office in Taipei, Gianforte said.
Ties between the two sides have been growing stronger through bilateral trade and educational exchanges, and because of their shared values of freedom and free enterprise, he said.
Montana has great scenery and quality beef and wheat, Gianforte said, adding that a delegation of Taiwanese flour milling industry representatives visited the state earlier this year.
The relationship between Montana and Taiwan has developed beyond trade in agricultural products, and is rapidly growing in other areas such as education, bioscience and photonics, he said.
In cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Education, a Mandarin program for high-school and college students is to be launched at the University of Montana’s Mansfield Center next year, Gianforte said.
With support from the ministries, Montana Technological University and Taiwan’s Minghsin University of Science and Technology are to offer short-term exchange programs to nurture semiconductor talent, he said.
Considering the photonics industry’s importance and potential in the 21st century, “it is imperative that we work to build this industry for our state, and Taiwan is a key partner in this,” Gianforte said.
The delegation is to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Taiwan-USA Industrial Cooperation Promotion Office and Taiwan’s Photonics Industry and Technology Development Association to facilitate the cooperation, he added.
ANOTHER EMERGES: The CWA yesterday said this year’s fourth storm of the typhoon season had formed in the South China Sea, but was not expected to affect Taiwan Tropical Storm Gaemi has intensified slightly as it heads toward Taiwan, where it is expected to affect the country in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, the 120km-radius storm was 800km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving at 9kph northwest, the agency said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued tonight at the earliest, it said, adding that the storm is projected to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday. Gaemi’s potential effect on Taiwan remains unclear, as that would depend on its direction, radius and intensity, forecasters said. Former Weather Forecast
As COVID-19 cases in Japan have been increasing for 10 consecutive weeks, people should get vaccinated before visiting the nation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said. The centers reported 773 hospitalizations and 124 deaths related to COVID-19 in Taiwan last week. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) on Tuesday said the number of weekly COVID-19 cases reported in Japan has been increasing since mid-May and surpassed 55,000 cases from July 8 to July 14. The average number of COVID-19 patients at Japan’s healthcare facilities that week was also 1.39 times that of the week before and KP.3 is the dominant
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) working group for Taiwan-related policies is likely to be upgraded to a committee-level body, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said. As Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is increasingly likely to upgrade the CCP’s Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, Taiwanese authorities should prepare by researching Xi and the CCP, the report said. At the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP, which ended on Thursday last week, the party set a target of 2029 for the completion of some tasks, meaning that Xi is likely preparing to
US-CHINA TRADE DISPUTE: Despite Beijing’s offer of preferential treatment, the lure of China has dimmed as Taiwanese and international investors move out Japan and the US have become the favored destinations for Taiwanese graduates as China’s attraction has waned over the years, the Ministry of Labor said. According to the ministry’s latest income and employment advisory published this month, 3,215 Taiwanese university graduates from the class of 2020 went to Japan, surpassing for the first time the 2,881 graduates who went to China. A total of 2,300 graduates from the class of 2021 went to the US, compared with the 2,262 who went to China, the document showed. The trend continued for the class of 2023, of whom 1,460 went to Japan, 1,334 went to