Office of the President Republic of China(Taiwan)

On the morning of September 13, President Tsai Ing-wen met with Wendy Cutler, President and Managing Director of the Washington D.C. Office of the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI), and Tami Overby, Senior Vice President for Asia at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The president praised her guests for their contributions in the field of economic and trade relations, and expressed hope that Taiwan can take part in the second round of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations in order to afford Taiwan opportunities for greater participation in the international economy.

In remarks, President Tsai noted that Ms. Cutler had spent nearly three decades at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). During that time she was responsible for TPP negotiations, and served as the Chief U.S. Negotiator for the U.S.-Korea (KORUS) Free Trade Agreement as well as the Trade and Investment Framework Agreements (TIFAs) with Taiwan. She is respected around the world for her expertise in economic and trade relations.

The president also mentioned that Ms. Overby has had a long career in the field of economic and trade relations. During her time as Senior Vice President at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce she has led the efforts for the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement ratification, and she is currently playing an important role in the U.S. Coalition for TPP as it works to secure ratification of the TPP by the US Congress.

Commenting on Taiwan's efforts to take part in the process of regional economic integration, President Tsai stated that joining the TPP is very important to Taiwan. Besides helping to spur domestic economic restructuring, it would also raise Taiwan's long-term economic competitiveness. For these reasons, joining the TPP has been identified by the government as one of its most important policy objectives. In order to accelerate Taiwan's march toward increased participation in the process of regional economic integration, the government will continue to promote economic and trade liberalization in Taiwan and will review and revise domestic legislation to bring it more closely in line with international norms, thereby making Taiwan's economy more competitive. On the international front, the government will seek the support of TPP members for Taiwan's admission to the agreement. Hopefully, she said, Taiwan can take part in second-round TPP negotiations.