The US is looking to expand cooperation with Taiwan in the field of agriculture, among other areas, the aim of which is to improve food security and sustainability, a summary of the ongoing US-Taiwan 21st Century Trade Initiative released on Friday showed.
During the talks, the US made a slew of proposals for bilateral cooperation in fields such as fair trade, labor, environmental protection and agriculture, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) said in press release.
The US “proposed a broad set of provisions designed to open or expand opportunities for American agricultural producers to access the Taiwan market, to advance food security, and to promote sustainable agricultural production,” the USTR said.
Photo: Tyrone Siu, Reuters
The proposed provisions are aimed at increasing transparency and regulatory certainty for agricultural exporters and importers, as well as at encouraging collaboration and innovation in areas such as sustainability and food security, it added.
The proposal also includes “cooperative efforts to promote innovation, fair trade and individualized approaches to advance environmental goals,” the USTR said.
On the environmental front, the US put forth provisions which aim to meaningfully contribute to environmental protection and respond to common sustainability challenges, including climate change, it said.
Taiwan and the US are committed to continuing their efforts to improve environmental protection and effectively enforce their respective environmental laws, the press release added.
The two sides also pledged not to weaken or reduce the protections already afforded in their domestic environmental laws in an effort to attract trade or investment, the USTR said.
Meanwhile, the proposals on labor include provisions and initiatives that would benefit workers and ensure free and fair trade, thus contributing to the promotion of sustainable and inclusive growth for the US and Taiwan, the press release said.
The summary on the ongoing talks was released in accordance with the commitment of US President Joe Biden’s administration to transparency in trade agreement negotiations, the USTR said.
The US-Taiwan 21st Century Trade Initiative was launched in 2022, under the auspices of the American Institute in Taiwan and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US.
In June last year, the two sides signed the first pact under the initiative, agreeing to customs administration and trade facilitation, good regulatory practices, domestic regulation of services, anti-corruption and matters relating to small and medium-sized enterprises.
After the in-person negotiations in August last year, both sides are currently working towards a second agreement, which they hope would cover other areas of economic importance.
A new round of in-person talks is expected to be held in Taipei, but the exact date has not yet been confirmed, a Taiwanese official familiar with the matter said.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his