MOFA Minister Wu addresses GTI Annual Symposium

2019/09/17

Taiwan is a role model in promoting freedom, democracy, rules-based order and good governance in the Indo-Pacific, Foreign Minister Jaushieh Joseph Wu said during a special video address at the Global Taiwan Institute Annual Symposium in Washington.

The country’s commitment to the region is illustrated by the launch of the Indo-Pacific Democratic Governance Consultations under the Taiwan-U.S. Global Cooperation and Training Framework, Wu said Sept. 11. Taiwan is also making real contributions in terms of agriculture, employment training, medical and technical missions and women’s empowerment, he added.

Other participants in the daylong event focusing on Taiwan-U.S. relations included Stanley Kao, head of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the U.S.; Richard C. Bush III, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution; and Stephen M. Young, former director of the AIT.

According to Wu, Taiwan is willing and able to work with like-minded countries in advancing the vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific. An increasing number of countries are joining Taiwan and the U.S. in defending shared values, he added, citing the participation of Japan and Sweden in the GCTF.

Wu also praised the strength of the enduring partnership between Taiwan and the U.S. in the 40th year of the Taiwan Relations Act. He highlighted President Tsai Ing-wen’s three transit stops in the U.S. during the Oceans of Democracy and Voyage of Freedom, Democracy, Sustainability state visits, the renaming of the Taiwan Council for U.S. Affairs from Coordination Council for North American Affairs, the U.S. State Department’s greenlighting of the sale of 66 F-16 C/D Block 70 aircraft and the upcoming Taiwan Agricultural Trade Goodwill Mission to the U.S.

GTI, established in 2016, is a think tank promoting greater understanding of Taiwan and its people through targeted policy research and engagement programs.

Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/index.php)