U.K.-Taiwan trade talks held virtually for 2nd year in a row due to COVID-19

Taipei, Oct. 18 (CNA) This year's annual U.K.-Taiwan trade talks were held virtually on Monday to enhance bilateral trade relations, especially in renewable energy, technology and education, according to the British Office Taipei.

The meeting was co-hosted by Penny Mordaunt, U.K. Minister of State at the Department for International Trade, and Taiwan's Deputy Minister of Economic Affairs, Chen Chern-Chyi (陳正祺). It was the 24th edition of its kind, stated the British Office Taipei, which represents the U.K.'s interests in Taiwan in the absence of official diplomatic ties, in a press release.

According to the office, both sides hope to make progress in market access regarding agriculture, energy, financial services, pharmaceuticals, and whisky during this year's dialogue.

This is the first Indo-Pacific event Mordaunt has attended since assuming office as U.K. minister for trade policy on Sept. 16.

This year also marks the second consecutive year that the annual dialogue was held in a virtual format due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the office said.

The annual vice ministerial-level trade talks were first held in 1991 and have taken place almost every year since then.

The U.K. is Taiwan's third-largest trading partner in Europe with bilateral trade at around 6.1 billion British pounds (NT$234.65 billion, US$8.38 billion) in 2020, according to the office.