Taiwan’s representative to Lithuania called for officials in the country to support a bilateral investment agreement (BIA) between Taiwan and the European Union. Representative Eric Huang (黃鈞耀) made the comments while giving a speech at the Foreign Investors Annual Summit of the American Chamber of Commerce in Lithuania on Thursday.
Taiwan has been advocating for a BIA with the EU for years, but a high-ranking EU official stated in March that such an agreement with Taiwan was not necessary.
Huang points out that in the past, the calculations of global manufacturing focused primarily on costs without taking into account other factors such as security and climate. He says now that many countries are moving into a “de-risking” strategy, Taiwan can play a critical role in the changing global economy.
Huang states that Lithuania and Taiwan share democratic values and that the two sides will continue to cooperate in tech and science fields such as semiconductors, lasers, biotechnology, and green energy. He also encouraged Lithuanian and Taiwanese companies to take advantage of the newly established Central and Eastern Europe Investment Fund.