Taiwan's trade negotiator to lead delegation to WTO meeting in Abu Dhabi

Taipei, Feb. 24 (CNA) The head of Taiwan's Office of Trade Negotiations, John Deng (鄧振中), will lead a delegation of Taiwanese officials to the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Abu Dhabi next week.

The delegation will raise various issues at the meeting, such as requesting the organization to better resolve problems that has surfaced as a result of non-market economies abusing subsidies designated for specific markets, which has caused overproduction of commodities like solar-power panels and steel, according to a press release issued Saturday by the office.

Led by Deng, the delegation to MC13 includes Taiwan's representative to the WTO Lo Chang-fa (羅昌發) and officials from the Office of Trade Negotiations, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Agriculture.

The delegation will also call for the WTO to set up a more complete and well-rounded dispute settlement mechanism at the conference to curb the compounding of trade disputes between nations.

It will also request the WTO to strongly regulate countries which have been documented to overfish, as well as take measures to protect food security, the office said.

It added that the delegates will also take it upon themselves to introduce Taiwan's strides in establishing global trading partnerships in recent years, including the Taiwan-U.S. Initiative on 21st-Century Trade, a Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Arrangement with Canada, as well as an Enhanced Trade Partnership Arrangement with the United Kingdom.

The showcasing of Taiwan's trade partnership agreements will demonstrate international support for including Taiwan as well as its tenacity and transparency in global trade, the office said.

It added that it hopes the examples could help Taiwan join more regional economic organizations.

Since it officially became a part of the WTO in 2002, Taiwan's foreign trade increased by 2.5 times, according to the trade office.

Unlike the last conference in 2022, which focused on post-pandemic revitalization, the biannual Ministerial Conference this year will instead aim towards WTO reform, sustainability and e-commerce, the office said.

Representatives from the WTO's 164 member states and 25 observer governments will all meet in person in Abu Dhabi for the four-day MC13 from Monday to Thursday.