Monday, January 11, 2010

Vice president pitches advantages of propsed trade pact with China

Taipei, Jan. 11 (CNA) Vice President Vincent Siew on Monday reiterated the importance of a comprehensive trade agreement with China, calling it a "necessary condition" to Taiwan's participation in regional economic integration.

Addressing more than a dozen of Taiwan's representatives to East Asian countries, Siew said the proposed economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) is a "threshold" that can "open a lot more doors for Taiwan" and avoid its marginalization and hollowing out in a fast-changing global economy.

"Why is it important? Because we have many businessmen in China and we have huge investments there, " he said in a keynote speech at an East Asia working meeting organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA).

"Taiwan needs an opportunity to participate in regional economic integration. The last thing we want is to be left out," he said.

Siew said a trade agreement will help normalize cross-Taiwan Strait relations. It will prevent Taiwan's economy from being marginalized and ensure its integration into the global economic system, he added.

"While the ECFA is not a full solution, it is a necessary condition" for Taiwan to gain a competitive edge after the ASEAN-China (Association of South East Asia Nations-China) free trade agreement kicks in this year and to start the push for free trade agreements with other Asian countries, he said.

He urged the diplomats to step up their lobbying efforts for East Asian countries to negotiate FTAs with Taiwan.

If the FTA negotiations progress smoothly, Taiwan should be able to reintroduce the "Go South" policy that it attempted to implement 20 years ago with the aim of integrating with the ASEAN countries.

Interestingly, the national economic strategy today is similar to that of 30 years ago, said Siew, a veteran economist who has been dubbed by President Ma as "the chief strategist" in Taiwan's national economic planning.

During his tenure years ago as an official of the Bureau of Foreign Trade, Siew said that the Taiwan government wants the economy to be "globalized, liberalized and institutionalized." "It seems to me that these three aims still stand today. We're striving to achieve the exact same goals," he said.

Even the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) knows that an emerging China holds the key to Taiwan's economic success, but the DPP failed to achieve any breakthrough during its eight years in power, Siew said.

"That is why the current administration intends to be a peacemaker, not a troublemaker, " he said.

Siew noted that the biggest threats to Taiwan's economy have not changed in the last few decades. In order to prevent the industry sectors from being hollowed out and marginalized in regional and global markets, Taiwan must continue to upgrade and transform its industries, he said.

"If industries fail to upgrade, companies will either have to shut down or move out (to other countries). If we are marginalized, businesses will not be able to expand their markets," he added.