BRITAIN announced today that a trade minister is heading to Taiwan for the first in-person talks since the coronavirus in a bid to strengthen ties with the island.

Trade Policy Minister Greg Hands will co-host annual talks and meet with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen during his two-day visit, the Department for International Trade said.

The visit “is a clear signal of the UK’s commitment to boosting UK-Taiwan trade ties. Like the UK, Taiwan is a champion of free and fair trade underpinned by a rules-based global trading system,” the department said in its statement.

It did not say when Hands would arrive in Taiwan. 

Hands said boosting trade with a “vital partner” like Taiwan is “part of the UK’s post-Brexit tilt towards the Indo-Pacific and closer collaboration will help us future-proof our economy in the decades to come”.

Taiwan has seen a flurry of visits by foreign officials and lawmakers in recent months, the most high-profile was US House peaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit that had infuriated Beijing.

China claims the self-ruled island democracy as part of its territory to be seized one day, by force if necessary, and opposes any move that might lend Taiwan international legitimacy.

It staged unprecedented military drills in retaliation for Pelosi’s visit in August, sending tensions to their highest level in decades.

Like many countries, Britain diplomatically recognises Beijing over Taipei but it maintains unofficial relations with the island through a representative office.

Britain said the talks would try to address barriers in some sectors including “fintech, food and drink and pharma” and that trade between the two had risen 14% the last two years to £8 billion (RM43 billion). – AFP, November 7, 2022.