Recent reports about Taiwan's Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) application being put on hold have sparked concerns that it may have been "shelved." The Foreign Ministry clarified on Tuesday that this is not the case.
Questions arose following the recent CPTPP executive committee meeting, where a working group was established for Costa Rica’s application but not Taiwan’s. Taiwan officially applied to join the CPTPP in September 2021.
Addressing these concerns, the Foreign Ministry pointed out that the joint statement from the CPTPP executive committee affirmed the member countries’ openness to applicants meeting the required standards. The statement added that working groups are not formed based on the order of application submissions. Director-General Lien Yu-ping (連玉蘋) of the Foreign Ministry’s Department of International Cooperation and Economic Affairs said Costa Rica’s progress does not impede discussions on Taiwan’s bid.
The ministry highlighted that the joint statement also reaffirmed opposition to economic coercion. It pledged that relevant government agencies would continue their efforts to gain the support of member nations. It also urged CPTPP members to handle membership applications, including Taiwan's, fairly and objectively.