Taipei, Jan. 20 (CNA) Taiwan's relations with the European Union (EU) are expected to continue growing and the EU remains very confident about Taiwan's economy and will continue supporting its meaningful participation in international fora, according to EU's top representative in Taipei.
"Whoever wins the March presidential election, the EU will continue to have a good trade and economic relation with Taiwan, and we will continue to develop cooperation in the fields of science, technology, environment and education, " Guy Ledoux, head of European Economic and Trade Office in Taipei, said in an interview with CNA over the weekend.
"When I see particular announcement of a big business deal like the investment of HSBC in China bank and the letter of intent signed by China Airline to buy 20 Air Bus A350, I think that shows that the EU is very confident in Taiwan's economy in the long run, " Ledoux said in an interview with CNA.
"Why would a bank like HSBC buy a Taiwanese bank if it is not confident about the economic future of Taiwan?" he added.
The EU, the largest foreign direct investor in Taiwan, accounted for 25 percent of Taiwan' foreign direct investment (FDI) with US$23 billion as of November 2007. Bilateral trade reached US$49.9 billion in 2007, according to statistics provided by Taiwan's Bureau of Foreign Trade.
In terms of Taiwan's intention to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) with the EU, Ledoux said that the EU's hands are full now with ongoing negotiations with South Korea, India and ASEAN. It also has to analyze whether an FTA is the best solution for improving trade relations.
Since December 2007, he said, the Schengen area has expanded to 24 countries, which will make travel easier for Taiwanese business people and benefit bilateral economic exchanges.
He said that a lot can be done in terms of economic reforms within Taiwan -- without mentioning the cross-strait issue -- for Taiwan to facilitate both increasing economic growth in Taiwan as well as expanding EU-Taiwan economic relations.
On diplomatic matters, Ledoux said that the EU will continue to support practical and meaningful participation in the World Health Organization (WHO).
Citing a statement by EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana made last October, Ledoux pointed out that the pursuit of a referendum on the question of United Nations membership in the name of Taiwan made it harder for Taiwan to enjoy the pragmatic participation, which the EU supports, in the activities of specialized multilateral fora.
Ledoux said that the office has three major plans for 2008. He would like to see breakthroughs in major trade issues of compulsory licensing and the government procurement agreement (GPA). It plans to establish an European Union Center (EU Center) -- a partnership with local universities to promote better understanding of the EU -- and to organize an international conference on environment.
Reviewing his first year in the office, Ledoux said 2007 has been a very fruitful year in terms of EU-Taiwan relations as the bilateral economic relation has continued to grow and he has been able to made good progress in bilateral exchanges in science and technology and to organize a small number of events.
Offering his observation of the Jan. 12 legislative elections, Ledoux said that the international community was impressed by Taiwan's democracy once again as the polls took place in a moderate and peaceful way and nobody had contested the results.