Taiwan, Slovakia sign MOUs to boost exchanges on trade, semiconductors

Taipei, Dec. 2 (CNA) Taiwan and Slovakia on Friday signed three memorandums of understanding (MOUs) in Bratislava, pledging to boost bilateral trade, exchanges between startups, and collaborations on talent nurturing for the semiconductor sector.

The MOUs were signed between the Importers and Exporters Association of Taipei and the Council of Slovak Exporters, Taiwan's Startup Terrace and Slovak Business Agency, National Sun Yat-sen University and the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava.

The signing of the MOUs was part of the second session of the Taiwanese-Slovak Commission on Economic Cooperation attended by a Taiwanese delegation led by Deputy Foreign Minister Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥).

During the session, Tsai and Slovak State Secretary of the Ministry of the Economy Peter Gerhart exchanged ideas on how to boost bilateral trade and economic cooperation.

Taiwan and Slovakia have seen a warming of relations in recent years, and both sides hope to expand their collaborations on semiconductors, electric vehicles and the space industry, Tsai said.

He welcomed Slovak officials to attend the annual session in Taiwan next year.

Other topics discussed during the session included renewable energy, biotech, space and science programs, he said.

Both sides agreed to continue to work to consolidate their substantial partnership, he said.

The Taiwanese delegation comprised representatives from the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Bureau of Energy, the National Science and Technology Council, and the partially government-funded Development Center for Biotechnology.

The Slovak delegation consisted of representatives from the Slovak Ministry of the Economy, the Slovak Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency, the Slovak Academy of Sciences, and the Slovak Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport.

Former Slovak State Secretary of the Ministry of the Economy Karol Galek led a delegation to Taipei in December 2021 for the first session of the commission.