Taipei, Nov. 23 (CNA) Taiwan should pay more attention to Central Asia, a region with great business potential and a massive political impact, academics said in a two-day international forum Thursday.
With a population of 56 million and an open economic system since breaking away from the former Soviet Union in 1991, Central Asia is looking at an output value of US$10 trillion in the next 10 years, forum President Fu Jen-kun said at the sixth Taiwan-Central Asia Forum that opened that day at Ching Yun University in Taoyuan County.
Central Asia, which consists of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikstan, is also rich in natural resources such as oil and natural gas -- another reason Taiwan must not ignore the potential in the region, said Fu.
It is probably hard for Taiwan to establish closer political ties with the countries of Central Asia due to the influence of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization -- an intergovernmental
organization founded in 2001 by China and the five Central Asia countries, but Taiwan must find another way to boost relations with the region, such as sharing agriculture experience, technology and expertise, said Taipei Agriculture Product Marketing Company Director Chang Yong-fang.
Taiwan needs to be involved with Central Asia affairs and expand its knowledge of the region if it wants to establish better ties with the region, Fu said.
The two-day forum has gathered government officials, academics and industry leaders from Taiwan and Central Asia.
With a population of 56 million and an open economic system since breaking away from the former Soviet Union in 1991, Central Asia is looking at an output value of US$10 trillion in the next 10 years, forum President Fu Jen-kun said at the sixth Taiwan-Central Asia Forum that opened that day at Ching Yun University in Taoyuan County.
Central Asia, which consists of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikstan, is also rich in natural resources such as oil and natural gas -- another reason Taiwan must not ignore the potential in the region, said Fu.
It is probably hard for Taiwan to establish closer political ties with the countries of Central Asia due to the influence of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization -- an intergovernmental
organization founded in 2001 by China and the five Central Asia countries, but Taiwan must find another way to boost relations with the region, such as sharing agriculture experience, technology and expertise, said Taipei Agriculture Product Marketing Company Director Chang Yong-fang.
Taiwan needs to be involved with Central Asia affairs and expand its knowledge of the region if it wants to establish better ties with the region, Fu said.
The two-day forum has gathered government officials, academics and industry leaders from Taiwan and Central Asia.