Taiwan, US Hold High-Level Trade Meeting

Taiwan and the U.S. had their first official meeting under the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement since 2016, and Assistant U.S. Trade Representative Terry McCartin praised Taiwan for improving its enforcement of trade secrets protections, and its plan to change its medical device approval process.

The U.S. summary of the video meeting said they want to work together on supply chain resiliency, but offered no details. According to Taiwanese press reports, Taiwan wants this cooperation to provide opportunities for its semiconductor manufacturing sector.

USTR also said that they agreed to work together to combat forced labor in supply chains, and will form a new Labor Working Group under the TIFA. The U.S. asked Taiwan to help combat wildlife trafficking and to explore with the U.S. what trade tools could help tackle global warming.

The U.S. said Taiwanese and American trade officials need to talk more to address U.S. complaints about market access barriers for U.S. beef and pork exports, as well as U.S. concerns about Taiwan's copyright law, digital piracy, financial services, investment and regulatory transparency.

They also agreed to have future meetings of working groups, including those that cover agriculture, intellectual property and others.

The Taiwanese government, in its summary of the meeting, said the U.S. said it understood that Taiwan is determined to negotiate a bilateral trade agreement with the U.S.