President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) announcement on Aug. 28 that the government would from next year allow imports of US pork containing ractopamine as well as US beef from cattle aged 30 months or older has sparked fierce debate in Taiwan.
In the US, Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, as well as a number of US senators and representatives, have publicly welcomed the move, saying they supported closer economic and trade ties between the two countries.
There are questions as to why the government chose to allow the imports at this time, with the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) accusing the Democratic Progressive Party administration of bartering public health for political gain.
Minister Without Portfolio John Deng (鄧振中) last week said that the ban is being lifted because Taiwan has handled its COVID-19 outbreak well and has the best reputation in the world regarding disease prevention, which offers an opportunity for other countries to engage in exchanges with it.
In Deng’s words, this should be the best time for Taiwan to ease the restrictions on US pork and beef; a little earlier or later might not be as good.
US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs David Stilwell on Monday last week announced that US Undersecretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Keith Krach would host the Taiwan-US Economic and Commercial Dialogue to bolster economic ties.
It is rare for the US Department of State to conduct such senior-level economic dialogue with foreign governments.
The US has proposed a new round of trade talks with Taiwan following Tsai’s announcement, which is different from the talks conducted under the bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA), which have been suspended since 2016. The resumption of TIFA negotiations is expected to increase Taiwan’s chances of joining regional trade agreements and reaching a bilateral trade deal with the US. However, Taiwan’s ractopamine ban has long been a barrier to trade talks with the US, and the issue was not fully addressed during previous administrations.
Therefore, Tsai’s effort to lift the long-time trade barrier means to open a window of opportunity for Taiwan to restart trade talks with the US. The Office of the US Trade Representative, which manages the TIFA talks, has yet to comment on Tsai’s announcement.
The move shows Taiwan’s resolve and ability to tackle difficult problems and sends a signal to the international community.
In light of the strong support for Taiwan on Capitol Hill and at the State Department, one could expect a breakthrough in trade talks soon, which would be the first step toward signing a bilateral trade agreement or a free-trade agreement with the US, although negotiations could take several years.
However, the obstacles to trade talks with the US are not limited to the issue of pork and beef imports, as Washington is also concerned about agricultural products, the trade deficit and foreign exchange rates, among other issues.
A Taiwan-US trade deal would affect not only the competitiveness of Taiwan’s exports, but also other issues involving domestic sectors, with which the government must deal carefully.
Any substantial progress in Taiwan-US economic and trade ties would help increase the visibility of Taiwan in the US and raise foreign investors’ confidence in Taiwan. How to maximize the effects of trade talks poses a considerable challenge to the Tsai administration.
On March 22, 2023, at the close of their meeting in Moscow, media microphones were allowed to record Chinese Communist Party (CCP) dictator Xi Jinping (習近平) telling Russia’s dictator Vladimir Putin, “Right now there are changes — the likes of which we haven’t seen for 100 years — and we are the ones driving these changes together.” Widely read as Xi’s oath to create a China-Russia-dominated world order, it can be considered a high point for the China-Russia-Iran-North Korea (CRINK) informal alliance, which also included the dictatorships of Venezuela and Cuba. China enables and assists Russia’s war against Ukraine and North Korea’s
After thousands of Taiwanese fans poured into the Tokyo Dome to cheer for Taiwan’s national team in the World Baseball Classic’s (WBC) Pool C games, an image of food and drink waste left at the stadium said to have been left by Taiwanese fans began spreading on social media. The image sparked wide debate, only later to be revealed as an artificially generated image. The image caption claimed that “Taiwanese left trash everywhere after watching the game in Tokyo Dome,” and said that one of the “three bad habits” of Taiwanese is littering. However, a reporter from a Japanese media outlet
Taiwanese pragmatism has long been praised when it comes to addressing Chinese attempts to erase Taiwan from the international stage. “Taipei” and the even more inaccurate and degrading “Chinese Taipei,” imposed titles required to participate in international events, are loathed by Taiwanese. That is why there was huge applause in Taiwan when Japanese public broadcaster NHK referred to the Taiwanese Olympic team as “Taiwan,” instead of “Chinese Taipei” during the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics. What is standard protocol for most nations — calling a national team by the name their country is commonly known by — is impossible for
The Iran war has exposed a fundamental vulnerability in the global energy system. The escalating confrontation between Iran, Israel and the US has begun to shake international energy markets, largely because Iran is disrupting shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. This narrow waterway carries roughly one-third of the world’s seaborne oil, making it one of the most strategically sensitive energy corridors in the world. Even the possibility of disruption has triggered sharp volatility in global oil prices. The duration and scope of the conflict remain uncertain, with senior US officials offering contradictory signals about how long military operations might continue.
RSS