MOEA delegation discusses expanded Taiwan-EU trade during Belgium visit

2022/05/27

A delegation led by Deputy Economic Minister Chen Chern-chyi visited Belgium May 23-24 as part of ongoing government efforts to expand Taiwan-EU relations, according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs.
 
During his call at the European Commission’s Directorate General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs and Directorate General for Trade, Chen and EC officials exchanged views on their respective policies and discussed ways to further enhance trade and investment ties.
 
The deputy minister also met with members of the European Parliament Kathleen Van Brempt of Belgium and Andrey Kovatchev of Bulgaria, both of whom serve on the EP Committee on International Trade.
 
Chen took the opportunity to thank the EP for backing expanded bilateral ties, while the two MEPs commended Taiwan for being a reliable like-minded partner of the EU and said they will continue promoting trade, investment and supply chain cooperation.
 
According to the MOEA, another highlight of the trip was a roundtable involving representatives of businesses, chambers of commerce and think tanks from the region.
 
During his keynote speech, the deputy minister said Taiwan and the EU share the universal values of democracy and respect for free trade, human rights and rule of law.
 
The two side enjoy complementary strengths in industrial development and climate change policies, Chen said. It is hoped that the two sides will continue to deepen cooperation in key areas such as 5G, digital transformation, electric vehicles, green energy and semiconductors, he added.
 
MOEA statistics show that the EU is the leading source of foreign investment in Taiwan and the country’s fifth largest trading partner. Two-way trade amounted to US$68.7 billion in 2021, up 32.45 percent from the year before.


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