The Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI) hosted "Canada-Taiwan Economic Cooperation: Opportunities for Western Canada" on April 24th. The event explored the flourishing Taiwan-Canada relationship under Canada's Indo-Pacific strategy, the potential for Taiwan's membership in the CPTPP facilitated by Canada's presidency, and the resulting opportunities for Western Canada. Ambassador Winston Wen-yi Chen delivered the welcoming remarks, with approximately 90 attendees including Canadian government officials, Alberta provincial trade officials, consulate officials from the United States and Japan in Calgary, business leaders, industry representatives, and students from the University of Calgary engaging in lively discussions.
Ambassador Harry Tseng highlighted the significant achievements in Taiwan-Canada bilateral cooperation since the release of Canada's Indo-Pacific strategy, including the signing of various agreements and memoranda covering health, investment, trade promotion, and innovation. He emphasized the diverse cooperation potential between Taiwan and Canada, citing recent collaborations such as the memorandum signed between TIPBA and the Indigenous Services Canada Manitoba Region. The ambassador urged Canada, as the current CPTPP presidency, to facilitate the accession process for all applying members and to establish working groups to strategize Taiwan's membership and its diplomatic and economic implications.
Dr. Hui-hsin Yen, Senior Deputy Executive Director, and Dr. Min Yang, Research Fellow from the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research, served as speakers, discussing Taiwan's progress in joining the CPTPP and addressing challenges such as concerns from some member countries regarding China's reaction. Dr. Yen stressed Taiwan's commitment to fair evaluation and consideration for all economies and emphasized the importance of establishing a reasonable timeline for membership consultations with other CPTPP members. Dr. Yang highlighted Taiwan's efforts to diversify its trade markets, reduce dependence on China, and deepen cooperation with Canada across various sectors. She underscored the significant diplomatic and economic benefits of Taiwan's CPTPP accession, promoting Taiwan as a reliable partner adhering to high standards and welcoming international engagement and investment.
Ken Hardie, Chair of the Canada-China Relations Special Committee of the Canadian House of Commons, and Christy Clark, former Premier of British Columbia, respectively served as opening speakers and keynote speakers for the seminar. Hardie reflected on the committee's report submitted to the parliament last March, emphasizing Taiwan's reliability as a democratic ally and its adherence to high trade standards. Clark highlighted the shared values of freedom and democracy between Taiwan and Canada, emphasizing Taiwan's remarkable international influence despite its limited land and population, suggesting Canada could learn from Taiwan in enhancing its international presence.
The seminar marked the first time that Taiwan's representative office in Canada hosted a CPTPP-related event outside the capital city, aiming to create favorable momentum for Taiwan's accession during Canada's presidency term.
