U.K. trade chief looks for closer Taiwan ties on semiconductors
ROC Central News Agency
11/09/2022 11:58 AM
Taipei, Nov. 9 (CNA) The United Kingdom is hoping for even closer cooperation with Taiwan on semiconductors and green energy and sees Taiwan as a "big, important part" of the Indo-Pacific region, Trade Policy Minister Greg Hands said in Taiwan on Tuesday.
In an interview with CNA, Hands, who is making his first overseas trip since returning to the U.K.'s Department for International Trade last month, said choosing Taiwan to be his first stop "made perfect sense."
"But also, I think it was important to make a visit to the Asia Pacific region. And I love coming to Taiwan. So for every reason Taiwan made perfect sense."
He is in Taipei until Thursday, primarily to co-host Wednesday's 25th edition of the U.K.-Taiwan Trade Talks -- annual government-level trade talks launched in 1991.
The latest edition marks the first in-person government-level U.K.-Taiwan talks held since the COVID-19 pandemic erupted in early 2020.
Hands told CNA that he first visited Taiwan in 1991 to visit his brother, who was working here at the time.
"In 1991, it [Taiwan] was still a developing economy. And now you have one of the world's highest GDP per capita, and is one of the most prosperous, successful market economies in the world."
As a global leader in semiconductors, Taiwan produces 92 percent of the worlds' advanced chips, he said, calling it "an astonishing track record."
The U.K., meanwhile, is world-renowned for its compound semiconductor production and research, mostly based in South Wales and is ranked fourth overall in generating influential semiconductor research, he said.
Bilateral cooperation has also focused on green energy, in particular offshore wind, as the U.K. is a major partner in Taiwan's green energy transition, with more than 38 British companies actively operating in Taiwan, Hands said.
The visiting British official said earlier Tuesday that he visited the Formosa 2 Offshore Wind Farm in Miaoli County, which was the first international offshore wind project supported by U.K. Export Finance and has involved the participation of more than 10 British companies.
Britain has Europe's largest and the world's second largest installed offshore wind sector, he said.
"Formosa 2 was a great example of how the U.K. can do more in partnering Taiwan's green energy transition. We'd like to see Taiwan make further efforts on beating climate change obligations and making sure that we get to net zero in the U.K."
Other areas for further cooperation include cybersecurity, FinTech, and data analytics, he said.
Underpinning bilateral cooperation is the fact that both the U.K. and Taiwan are island democracies, he said.
"I've personally been coming here for more than 30 years, and I am always impressed by the economic development, social development in Taiwan, and its strong adherence to democratic values. I think it is really important in today's world."
He added that for the U.K., Taiwan is a "big important part" of the Indo-Pacific region, and "we see Taiwan as a natural friend of the U.K. in the region."
Hands was appointed minister of state at the Department for International Trade on Oct. 9, a post he previously held from 2020 to 2021 and from 2016 to 2018.
(By Joseph Yeh)
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