(Source from: money.udn0503) ☺

In an exclusive interview with an online program, Li Chun, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, talked about the possibility of signing a free trade agreement (FTA) between Taiwan and the United States. Li Chun believes that "may have to wait until the next US president".

 

President Tsai Ing-wen recently attended the American Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan’s 2023 New Year’s Eve dinner, looking forward to exploring opportunities for a Taiwan-US free trade agreement in the next step; Vice Foreign Minister Li Chun today talked about Taiwan’s Possibility of US signing FTA.

 

Li Chun said that he has seen signs that the United States is beginning to seriously consider this issue. If it is one kilometer away from the signing of the FTA between Taiwan and the United States, "half of it has been done now", and it has already gone 600 meters. This is "Taiwan-US 21st Century Trade Initiative", while 400 meters are related to the opening of markets and the freedom of tariffs.

 

Li Chun pointed out that the two major features of FTA are trade and investment rules, as well as tariff liberalization, investment liberalization and government procurement liberalization.

 

He said that the 400-meter road to signing the FTA has not yet been discussed. It is not that the United States does not support Taiwan, but that neither the Democratic Party nor the Republican Party supports market opening negotiations in recent years. Free trade"; but Li Chun said that Taiwan and the United States are discussing the FTA quickly, which means they are ready to apply for the "Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP)".

 

Deng Zhenzhong, Political Councilor of the Executive Yuan, recently visited the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and exchanged views with Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Sarah Bianchi on the progress of the Taiwan-U.S. 21st Century Trade Initiative, and also discussed the items to be negotiated in the next step. Li Chun expressed that he believed that Deng Zhenzhong's trip would be fruitful.

 

As for CPTPP is expected to start a new round of discussions in July this year, Li Chun said that the difficulty of joining CPTPP lies in political issues; he said that most countries, including Japan and Canada, have expressed their support for Taiwan. Already ran 900 meters", but the external preparations will increase from 200 meters.

 

The Food and Drug Administration recently announced that it will open the import of all-aged beef from Canada. It is rumored that it is related to Taiwan’s bid to join the CPTPP. Li Chun said that this is a return to global practice, and Canada has shown a strong willingness to interact with Taiwan, and Canada will serve as the chairman of the CPTPP Executive Committee next year. , the situation is favorable to Taiwan.