00:00Taiwan is still waiting to join a regional free trade pact known as the Comprehensive
00:06and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, or CPTPP. It applied four years
00:11ago on Monday, just six days after China made its own surprise bid to join. CPTPP members make up
00:18about 15% of the global economy and account for roughly a quarter of Taiwan's total trade.
00:24Taiwan's lead trade negotiator at the time explained the urgency of applying
00:29under the name Taiwan uses at the WTO.
00:52Four years later, John Deng says none of the other member countries seem to know that China would
00:58apply and that Taiwan had been told to wait.
01:00Prior to our submission, we follow all the rules, that is, we consult with other members.
01:10That consultation process went on for some time. They advised us to hold until they gave us
01:19further signal.
01:21China claims Taiwan as its territory, and, as with all international agreements, objects
01:27to Taiwan's participation in the CPTPP.
01:30The Pacific trade deal has been rocky from the start. It began as the Trans-Pacific Partnership,
01:52or TPP, championed by the U.S. under then-President Barack Obama as a counterweight to China's regional
01:58influence and way of doing business.
02:01We believe in fair competition, which is why TPP is the first trade agreement to level the
02:06playing field between private firms and state-owned enterprises.
02:10However, amid public opposition to free trade PACs at home, a newly inaugurated Donald Trump withdrew
02:20from the deal in 2017 as one of his first acts as president. The PAC's remaining members quickly
02:26sought to revive the deal under a new name, signing the agreement in 2018. And it has continued to expand.
02:32The bloc began with its original 11 member countries in the Pacific. In 2024, the UK became the first
02:40and only new member to successfully join. The near-simultaneous applications of Taiwan and China were
02:46followed by several other countries, such as Costa Rica, Uruguay, Ecuador, Ukraine, and Indonesia.
02:53The first step to joining the pact is the formation of a so-called Ascension Working Group, which requires
02:58consensus from all members. Although Taiwan and China's applications came earliest, Costa Rica is
03:04the only country to currently have a working group.
03:06We are quite confident that no country block Taiwan. It's just procedurally, the consensus
03:17apparently has not been reached yet.
03:22Some believe it may be difficult for members to reach consensus.
03:25Some of the CPTVP members have a very close relationship with mainland China. If those
03:32CPTVP members, you know, support Taiwan's application of the CPTVP, they may incur the retaliation
03:42from mainland China, either economically or politically.
03:46And beyond political problems, Taiwan may still need to address certain aspects of its market
03:51access to join the deal.
03:53Taiwan, we still have a few things to do. For example, we still have some very high-level
03:58product, for example, our agricultural sector, or some very few items in the industrial sector,
04:04for example, the automobile. Also, in the service sector, we may have to further liberalize our
04:09telecommunication sector and so on. But for all the things I just mentioned, I think Taiwan
04:15can, you know, can achieve that.
04:17The CPTPP Commission is currently chaired by Australia, with Vietnam taking over next year.
04:23In a statement to Taiwan Plus, Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said
04:27that all decisions are made by consensus among the 12 CPTPP members. Taiwan's Office of Trade
04:33Negotiations told Taiwan Plus it's still seeking support from member countries and is calling on
04:38them to establish a working group for Taiwan as soon as possible without political considerations.
04:43And those like John Deng are still hopeful.
04:46I can very comfortably tell all the audience that Taiwan certainly can meet this high standard
04:54and good compliance record. It is very clear that Taiwan, since we joined WTO 20-some years ago,
05:07that we didn't have any trade dispute with any countries. I think CPTPP, we have very high hope
05:17on them, and we want to be part of that and to continue to contribute.
05:26Four years on, Taiwan says it can meet the rules to join the CPTPP. At the next commission meeting
05:32planned later this year, it will find out if the other members agree.
05:36Lee Sin Chun and Chris Gorin for Taiwan Plus.
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