KMT, DPP trade barbs over free trade investment deal, ECFA

Taipei, Dec. 17 (CNA) Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) have been trading barbs over the past few days, accusing each other of failings, after China announced the conclusion of its trade barrier investigation relating to Taiwan, less than a month before the country's presidential election.

In a statement issued Sunday, the office of KMT presidential candidate Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) accused the ruling administration of failing to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) with any major economies nor join any international trade bloc, undermining the nation's ability to trade.

Since the DPP came to power in May 2016, it has only managed to sign two FTAs, one with the nation's African diplomatic ally Eswatini and another with its former Central American ally, El Salvador, Hou's campaign spokesman Hank Chen (陳柏翰) said in the statement.

El Salvador and Taiwan, officially named the Republic of China (ROC), severed diplomatic relations in August 2018, when the former ditched Taipei in favor of Beijing. The FTA between the countries became invalid in May this year.

In contrast, the KMT administration under President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) from 2008 to 2016 not only signed the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) with China but also FTAs with New Zealand and Singapore, Chen said.

"Only by maintaining peace and stable economic and trade exchanges across the Taiwan Strait can Taiwan gain more opportunities to negotiate trade with other countries," he said.

Meanwhile, Hou told reporters during a campaign event on Sunday that Taiwan should not pick sides in terms of trade.

"We should not put all our eggs in one basket (namely China), but we should also put eggs in the largest basket next to us," Hou said.

He added that if elected, he would do his best to help Taiwan join regional trade pacts that the DPP government has failed to join, including the United States-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF), Japan-led Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), and the China-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

Hou's comments came after China's Ministry of Commerce accused Taiwan on Friday of imposing restrictions on the import of more than 2,455 products from China, and said that such action represents a barrier to trade.

Many experts see this as a prelude to China rescinding the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) that it signed with Taiwan in 2010, in an attempt to pressure the Beijing-wary DPP and Taiwanese voters ahead of the Jan. 13 presidential election.

In 2022, China accounted for about 30 percent of Taiwan's total imports and exports by value, statistics show.

Following China's trade barrier announcement, Vice President and DPP presidential candidate Lai Ching-te (賴清德) alleged Saturday that the KMT may have been collaborating with the Chinese government to interfere in the upcoming election.

Lai said China had originally planned to announce the result of its trade barrier probe on Jan. 12, and asked why Beijing brought its announcement forward, following KMT Vice Chairman Andrew Hsia's (夏立言) recent visit to China.

"Is there any coordination with outside forces in an attempt to influence this election?" Lai asked.

Meanwhile, stumping for DPP lawmaker Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) in Kaohsiung on Sunday morning, DPP vice presidential candidate and the nation's ex-top envoy to U.S., Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) said Taiwan was the first country U.S. President Biden signed a trade agreement with after assuming office in Jan. 2021.

Hsiao was referring to the launch of the Taiwan-US Initiative on 21st-Century Trade in June 2022, with the first agreement under the initiative signed by both sides in June 2023.

The DPP government has lauded the initiative as the most comprehensive trade agreement signed between Taiwan and the U.S. since the U.S. severed diplomatic ties in 1979, and a key step in Taiwan's efforts to sign trade agreements with major trading countries.

Hsiao noted that Taipei and Washington are currently in talks to avoid double taxation, to further promote bilateral trade and investment and help Taiwanese products be introduced to markets around the world.

"The DPP is now able to showcase Taiwan to the world," she said.

On the ECFA issue and China's Ministry of Commerce's Friday announcement, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said later Friday that Taiwan is willing to hold discussions on trade disputes with China under the WTO as both are WTO members.

The Chinese ministry said its decision was made after an investigation into potential trade barriers, which began on April 12, related to a ban imposed by Taiwan on imports of Chinese products.

There was no indication of what China could do having made this determination. China's Taiwan Affairs Office spokeswoman Zhu Fenglian (朱鳳蓮) said on the same day that the Chinese ministry's finding indicates that the DPP government's import restrictions on selected Chinese products violate the ECFA signed by both sides, but did not say if China is considering scrapping the agreement.

Ward Chiefs Detained over China Trips

Meanwhile, in related election news on Sunday, the DPP and KMT sparred over the decision by prosecutors in several local cities and counties to question dozens of ward chiefs after they accepted free trips to China in relation to alleged election interference by China.

In a press conference held by the KMT legislative caucus, KMT lawmaker Lee De-wei (李德維) called the questioning of ward chiefs "blatant and bloody" interference in the election by the DPP government, and urged the DPP to adhere to administrative neutrality and not use the judiciary to interfere in the election.

KMT Vice Presidential Candidate Jaw Shau-kong (趙少康) said Sunday that he refused to believe Taiwanese ward chiefs would change their political affiliation "just because they were being given two free meals" during China trips.

In response, DPP lawmaker Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) called on the KMT to respect the nation's judicial system.

Wang said no one is opposed to Taiwanese people traveling to China for pleasure.

However, if a Taiwanese citizen is under the invitation of the Chinese Communist Party and during such a China trip if he or she is asked how to vote in upcoming Taiwan elections, such behavior is a violation of Taiwanese laws, according to Wang.