The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), and the representative offices of Australia, Canada and Japan in Taiwan yesterday issued a joint statement reaffirming their commitment to the Global Cooperation and Training Framework (GCTF) and their hope that the partnership would be expanded.
Ahead of the GCTF’s 10th anniversary on June 1, the joint statement was issued by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍), AIT Director Raymond Greene, Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association Chief Representative Kazuyuki Katayama, Australian Office in Taipei Representative Robert Fergusson and Canadian Trade Office in Taipei Executive Director Jim Nickel.
Since 2015, more than 87 workshops have been organized under the banner of the GCTF, with combined attendance by more than 10,000 government officials and experts from 133 countries, the statement said.
Photo courtesy of the Presidential Office
“At a time when Taiwan’s international participation remains constrained, the GCTF remains a vital platform for sharing Taiwan’s expertise, strengthening like-minded cooperation, and forging new partnerships to address common challenges,” it said.
“As we celebrate this milestone, we reaffirm our unwavering commitment to this vital platform,” it said, adding that members look forward to maintaining and expanding the partnership to contribute to a more peaceful, prosperous and sustainable future for all.
Efforts to boost the partnership and expand the impact of the GCTF include enhancing global recognition of the platform, welcoming additional partners, exploring new opportunities to deepen engagements, and establishing additional formal cooperation mechanisms to support enhanced partner coordination and long-term platform growth, the statement said.
The ministry said that the GCTF serves as an important platform for implementing “integrated diplomacy” and facilitating Taiwan’s cooperation with like-minded countries, and that in the face of global challenges, it not only expands the role of “Team Taiwan” in international society, but it also demonstrates that Taiwan is an indispensable and steadfast partner of “Team World.”
The GCTF was established by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US and the AIT on June 1, 2015. It is a platform for Taiwan to share its expertise with partners around the world, while also enabling like-minded partners to address issues of mutual concern.
Japan, Australia and Canada joined as full partners in 2019, 2021 and last year respectively.
Meanwhile, the ministry yesterday said that Lin on Monday met with European members of parliament (MP) Reinis Poznaks and Beatrice Timgren, as well as policy adviser Jens Vornoe in Taipei.
They discussed topics including how democratic partners counter the global expansion of authoritarianism, Taiwan-EU economic and technological resilience, and cultural exchanges, the ministry said.
Lin also hosted a dinner for a British Labour Party delegation led by MP Navendu Mishra on Monday evening, at which he thanked the British parliament for taking actions to demonstrate its support for Taiwan, including passing a motion affirming that UN Resolution 2758 does not mention Taiwan, nor preclude Taiwan’s meaningful participation in UN agencies, the ministry added.
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