Taiwan claims right to sign FTAs as WTO member
Taipei Times, Taiwan
Taiwan claims right to sign FTAs as WTO member
Reuters And AP , Sapporo, Japan
6 June 2010
Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-shiang (施顏祥) said yesterday that Taiwan, as a WTO member, has the right to seek free trade deals with as many countries as it chooses, a move recently strongly opposed by China.
Asked on Tuesday whether the cross-strait economic pact would help Taipei pursue other free trade agreements (FTA), Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu (馬朝旭) said that Beijing “firmly objects to any official exchanges Taiwan has with China’s diplomatic allies”
The remarks came as a major embarrassment for the Taiwanese government, as its officials have repeatedly said that a cross-strait trade pact could open doors to Taiwan signing FTAs with Japan, the US and Southeast Asian nations.
“Pursuing EPAs and FTAs is the right of WTO members. Taiwan, is of course a member and has these rights,” Shih said, referring to Economic Partnership Agreements and Free Trade Agreement.
“We would like to do our best and continue EPA and FTA negotiations with our main trading partners,” he said, speaking on the sidelines at a meeting of APEC trade ministers in northern Japan.
Some US$109 billion (NT$3.5 trillion) worth of products a year flow across the Taiwan Strait and while the pact will slash tariffs on hundreds of these, it has divided Taiwan into two camps; those who see its US$390 billion economy benefiting from more access to China’s markets and those who fear over-reliance on a political rival.
While President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration had previously expressed confidence that an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China would be signed this month, Shih yesterday declined to confirm that timeframe.
“Of course, both sides expected to see difficulties and obstacles in ECFA ... We are trying to sign this as soon as possible,” he said.
