US Indicates Resumption of Trade Talks with Taiwan... China Conducts Artillery Drills (Comprehensive)

TIFA Negotiations Likely to Resume After Trump Suspension
Beijing Winter Olympics Boycott Moves Also Indicated
China Reveals Eastern Theater Shelling...Expresses Displeasure

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Beijing=Correspondents Youngshin Cho and Hyunwoo Lee] The U.S. government has indicated its intention to resume negotiations on the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) with Taiwan. This is a factor that could greatly provoke China, which advocates the "One China" policy. In response to the U.S.'s successive close diplomatic ties with Taiwan, China expressed displeasure by conducting large-scale artillery firing drills toward the Taiwan Strait.

On the 7th (local time), U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken appeared before the House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing and suggested that negotiations to conclude a TIFA agreement with Taiwan could be resumed. Secretary Blinken said, "We are in talks about a trade agreement with Taiwan, and we expect that some form of agreement can be reached soon." He emphasized, "The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) will know more details, but these talks should continue to be pursued."

The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Washington, which serves as Taiwan's de facto embassy in the U.S., also stated in a press release that day, "We are working to negotiate a trade agreement with the USTR," adding, "We expect this to bring progress to the trade relationship between the two countries."

The TIFA negotiations jointly promoted by the U.S. and Taiwan began in 1994 and have been repeatedly suspended and resumed depending on changes in U.S.-China relations. Recently, negotiations resumed during the Barack Obama administration in 2013 but were again suspended in 2016 when the Donald Trump administration took office, citing a focus on trade negotiations with China. Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen officially requested the U.S. government to resume TIFA negotiations last August, emphasizing the need for a free trade agreement (FTA) directly between the U.S. and Taiwan, but the Trump administration did not respond at that time.

However, with the change to the Biden administration, the situation has reversed, and the U.S. side appears to be hastening the resumption of negotiations. This is interpreted as due to Taiwan's increased strategic value as a key hub in the international semiconductor supply chain.

Bonnie Glaser, an Asia expert and researcher at the German Marshall Fund (GMF), said in an interview with The Hill, "Secretary Blinken's remarks today increase the possibility of concluding a TIFA with Taiwan, which has not been held since the Obama administration," adding, "Senior Biden administration officials have been encouraging the USTR to hold TIFA talks, and Taiwan also hopes to hold them soon."

On the same day, Secretary Blinken also pressured China by hinting at a boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics scheduled for February next year, saying, "We hope to build a 'common approach' with our allies," and "More will come out in the next few weeks."

Meanwhile, the Chinese government issued a warning against the close U.S.-Taiwan diplomacy by revealing that military units along the eastern coast facing Taiwan conducted large-scale live-fire artillery drills.

On that day, China's state-run media Global Times reported that the 71st Group Army Artillery Brigade under the Eastern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army, responsible for the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea areas, conducted indirect fire training with the latest 155mm howitzers in the eastern coastal region. Citing Chinese military experts, Global Times emphasized, "It should be recognized that the People's Liberation Army holds an overwhelming military advantage in the Taiwan issue."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.