Taiwan, US enter ‘harder’ phase of trade talks as mainland China bristles
- Taiwan and the United States have concluded early talks in the second phase of their trade deal, with a broad range of issues on the agenda
- Nature of topics means second phase will be ‘harder’ than first phase limited mostly to ‘low-hanging fruit’, analysts say
Negotiators from Taiwan and the United States concluded five days of complex talks over the second phase of their trade deal on Friday, with analysts predicting “harder” progress in negotiations due to the numerous labour, environmental and agricultural practices involved.
Teams from the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) and Taiwan’s Office of Trade Negotiations began work on phase two of the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century Trade on Monday.
In “brief but busy” sessions this week, the two sides discussed labour rights, the promotion of “green enterprises”, agricultural laws and food safety, the Taiwanese team said in a statement on Friday, adding the two sides “increased mutual understanding”.
Reaching an agreement on the second phase will be harder than negotiations for the first
Before the talks, the US had raised the labour and environmental practices of the giant Taiwanese distant-water fishing fleet as areas of concern. The two sides anticipate meeting again to pursue further agreement, the statement added.
