A group of visiting Canadian academics yesterday said they are pleased to see Ottawa take steps to develop bilateral ties and gain a deeper understanding of Taiwan.
The steps include starting talks on establishing a bilateral investment pact and appointing a senior diplomat to Taiwan as top envoy, the academics said.
The delegation comprising nine academics arrived in Taiwan on Sunday and is to stay until Saturday. It is headed by Pascale Massot, an assistant professor in the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa, who is also a member of the Canadian minister of foreign affairs’ Indo-Pacific Advisory Committee.
Photo: CNA
Vina Nadjibulla, an adjunct professor at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia, said the purpose of the visit is to “deepen people-to-people relations and to learn about Taiwan.”
“Canada and Taiwan share common values of democracy and respecting human rights. And we face similar challenges in addressing authoritarianism and disinformation. So, it’s very much a learning and exchanging-of-views trip,” she added.
Nadjibulla said the group has visited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, three major political parties, and think tanks as Taiwan heads toward next year’s presidential election.
She said it is important to treat Taiwan “as an agent, not just a chip in the geopolitical game.”
The visit would give the academics firsthand experience of Taiwan, which is crucial in providing insights, instead of merely “watching it from afar,” she added.
She added that warming relations between Taiwan and Canada are positive, because the two have “complementary economies,” and share similar values and challenges, adding that the prospect of a bilateral foreign investment promotion and protection agreement (FIPA) was “very exciting.”
In February, Minister Without Portfolio John Deng (鄧振中) and Canadian Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development Mary Ng (伍鳳儀) in a joint statement said that the two sides had agreed to begin formal negotiations on a FIPA.
The talks began after Ottawa in November last year issued its first Indo-Pacific Strategy, which says the future of the region is of the utmost importance to Canada.
The document mentions Taiwan numerous times, saying that Canada would continue its multifaceted engagement with the nation by deepening cooperation in trade, technology, supply chains, healthcare, democratic governance and tackling disinformation.
It also says that Canada would continue to foster economic and people-to-people exchanges with Taiwan, and support its resilience.
Canadian Global Affairs Institute president David Perry said Canada has some “really pointed language” about Taiwan in its Indo-Pacific Strategy, “in a positive sense.”
Bijan Ahmadi, executive director and founding member of the Institute for Peace and Diplomacy, a Canadian non-partisan think tank, said the FIPA talks and the appointment of Canadian representative to Taiwan Jim Nickel are evidence that Ottawa has been placing more emphasis on Taiwan.
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