Lai Shin-yuan: The government's Mainland policy is to extend
cross-strait rapprochement to international relations and to join in promoting the
prosperity and development of the East Asian region
Starting from September 9, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister
Lai Shin-yuan made a five-day visit to Europe at the invitation of the organizers
of the 2010 Asia-Pacific Security Forum and the European Parliament-Taiwan Friendship
Group. During her stay, Minister Lai called on think tanks and other institutions
and agencies in Brussels, Belgium to give speeches and exchange views with scholars
participating in the forum from the United States, Japan and Europe. She also will
present a speech to the Belgium overseas Chinese community on the evening of September
12 (local time) and visit the European Parliament to speak to parliament members
on the morning of September 14.
The MAC stated that, Minister Lai’s speech delivered at 1:00
p.m. today at the 2010 Asia-Pacific Security Forum was her first public activity
on this visit to Europe. The Forum has been held once annually in rotation in Taiwan,
the United States, Europe, Japan and other countries since 1996. It is organized
and joined by internationally influential think tanks and academic groups. Views
presented at the Forum often serve as important references for the United States,
Europe, Japan and other countries in the process of drafting foreign policies. This
year's forum was jointly held by the Pacific Forum of the U.S. Center for Strategic
and International Studies, the Philippine Institute for Strategic and Development
Studies, France's Asia Center, Belgium's European Institute for Asia Studies, and
the Taiwan Institute for National Policy Research. Participating scholars included
former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Thomas J. Christensen, President of the
Pacific Forum Dr. Ralph A. Cossa, and European Institute for Asia Studies Chair
Ludo Cuyvers. The MAC stated that this important international occasion offers an
excellent opportunity to explain to the international community the ROC government’s
Mainland policy, exchange views and seek support from other countries. Minister
Lai thanked the organizers for the invitation as well as the Taipei Representative
Office in the EU and Belgium for arranging the visit.
Minister Lai opened her speech by noting that regional economic
cooperation is a major world trend. The United States, Japan, mainland China, and
ASEAN together form the main force of development in the Asia-Pacific region. However,
due to the past cross-strait political deadlock, Taiwan has been absent from this
trend until President Ma Ying-jeou came into office, who has made the stability
of cross-strait relations a positive force in promoting peace in the Asia-Pacific
region. Minister Lai emphasized that, over the past more than two years, the right
policy course and the strong support from nearly 80% of the Taiwan people for institutionalized
cross-strait negotiations have enabled President Ma's Mainland policy to reach achievements
of peace rarely recorded in the history of Asia. The government will strive to make
this remarkable feat a lasting chapter of history.
Minister Lai briefed the nearly one hundred think tank scholars
attending the conference on the ROC government's achievements in promoting its Mainland
policy. She said that during the two-year-and-three-month period since the two sides
resumed institutionalized negotiations in June 2008 based on the "1992 Consensus,"
the ROC government and the Mainland side held five high-level cross-strait talks
and signed 14 agreements, including the Cross-Strait Economic Cooperation Framework
Agreement (ECFA) and the Cross-Strait Agreement on Intellectual Property Right Protection
and Cooperation signed on June 29 this year. The fruit of these negotiations has
been to create a mutually beneficial relationship of cooperation between the two
sides. The ECFA, whose signing has attracted the world's attention the most, is
an economic cooperation agreement that conforms to the basic principles of the WTO,
embodies cross-strait characteristics, and will be implemented in phases.
Minister Lai emphasized that the ECFA is a cross-strait bilateral
agreement actively promoted by the Taiwan government in consideration of the trend
of economic globalization as well as to seriously face up to the reality of China's
economic rise, as part of an overall economic strategy of "strengthening Taiwan,
linking into the Asia- Pacific, and positioning globally." Since mainland China
already is Taiwan's biggest trade partner, the government must establish institutionalized
economic and trade relations with the Mainland in order to make cross-strait economic
and trade exchanges stable and predictable, to protect foreign enterprises and Taiwan
businesses with operations on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, and to further attract
foreign investment to Taiwan. Secondly, due to the signing of free trade agreements
among Asian countries, Taiwan products are directly faced with a competitive environment
of high tariffs. Therefore, the signing of the ECFA is to help Taiwan begin building
an environment for fair trade competition. At the same time, the signing of the
ECFA will further strengthen the stable development of cross-strait relations, improve
cross-strait relations, be conducive to getting other governments to consider signing
economic cooperation agreements with Taiwan, and further promote the linkage of
Taiwan's economy with the world.
Minister Lai also put special emphasis on that the ECFA was signed
on the basis of mutually beneficial cross-strait talks and is in line with the principle
of proportionality. It is entirely unrelated to sovereignty and political issues
and is a specific embodiment of the two sides "putting aside political disputes"
in the course of institutionalized cross-strait negotiations. Not one single word
among the 16 articles in the five chapters of the ECFA contains any political conditions
or political commitments. The sovereignty of the Republic of China absolutely is
not harmed at all.
Minister Lai further noted that since the government announced
its promotion of the ECFA in February last year, the Agreement has attracted close
attention and positive assessment from international media. On August 5 this year,
Taiwan and Singapore announced that they would begin discussions on the feasibility
of signing an economic cooperation agreement. In July this year, the WTO Secretariat
stated that Taiwan can use the ECFA as a basis for signing free trade agreements
with other trading partners, indicating that the government is correct in its course
of signing the ECFA to participate in regional economic integration and promote
regional prosperity.
Minister Lai also emphasized that the ECFA will regulate economic
and trade activities across the Strait based on universally followed game rules.
Therefore, the ECFA 's existence will greatly reduce the likelihood of armed conflicts
across the Taiwan Strait. It also is the key to turning confrontation and war into
peace and prosperity, as well as an important milestone in institutionalizing cross-strait
economic and trade relations and strengthening the foundation of mutual trust between
the two sides.
Minister Lai further indicated that, international participation
apart from the economic and trade arena also is a course that the ROC government
is actively striving to promote. Therefore, over the past more than two years, the
government has continued to develop its foreign relations in various areas, including
resuming mutual trust and cooperation with the United States and Japan, as well
as consolidating relations with the European Union. Concrete results in this regard
include Health Minister’s participation in the World Health Assembly (WHA) for two
consecutive years, Taiwan's joining in the Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA)
under WTO, and the granting of visa-free treatment to Taiwan visitors by the United
Kingdom, New Zealand, and Ireland.
Minister Lai finally highlighted that cross-strait relations
and Taiwan's foreign relations are complementary. The Mainland policy of the ROC
government is aimed not just at improving cross-strait relations. Adopting a global
mindset, the government seeks to establish an environment of peaceful and stable
regional security, extend cross-strait rapprochement to international relations,
and join in promoting prosperity and development in East Asia. Therefore, maintaining
Taiwan's sound and orderly foreign relations and benign cross-strait interactions,
as well as continuing to build a mechanism for mutual trust between the two sides,
are important keys to ensuring peace and security across the Taiwan Strait and stability
and development in the Asia-Pacific region. These also are policy objectives that
the government will continue to promote. The situation in the Taiwan Strait has
gone from the brink of war to today's peace and stability within just over two years.
This is a right path—one the ROC government will resolutely continue to take until
an irreversible and solid foundation for cross-strait peace is established.