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Published Date: 2017-01-24
Taiwan hopes to enhance its trade relations with the United States after its withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). That’s the word from Cabinet spokesperson Hsu Kuo-yung on Tuesday.
The new US president, Donald Trump, signed an executive order on Monday to formally withdraw from the trade pact brokered by the Obama administration. The 12-country pact was designed to create a single market of goods and services twice the size of the European Union. Taiwan is not a signatory but had hoped to enter negotiations to join.
Hsu said Taiwan now hopes to improve trade ties with the US based on existing agreements and by relaxing trade regulations. He said, "[Joining the] TPP now seems very difficult after the United States pulled out, but we still hope to enhance economic and trade relations with the US based on the Taiwan-US Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA). On the other hand, we also hope that our regulations can be more relaxed to help boost our economy. In terms of working toward regional trade pacts, we have been diligent and will continue to be so."