Taiwan welcomes UK in becoming GCTF full partner

Taipei, Nov. 12 (CNA) Taiwan on Wednesday welcomed the United Kingdom's decision to become a full partner of a mechanism launched by Taipei and Washington that allows Taiwan to share its expertise on the world stage.

In a statement, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) welcomed the U.K. in joining Taiwan, the United States, Japan, Australia, and Canada as the newest full partner of the Global Cooperation and Training Framework (GCTF).

The GCTF was launched in 2015 by Taiwan and the U.S. as a platform that allows Taiwan to share its expertise on global issues and contribute alongside global partners, as Taipei has been sidelined at major international organizations due to Chinese pressure.

MOFA's statement was released after U.K. representative to Taiwan Ruth Bradley-Jones announced earlier Wednesday the decision to join the GCTF.

The representative of the British Office Taipei, the de facto U.K. embassy in Taiwan in the absence of official ties, announced the decision during a GCTF workshop on enhancing energy resilience in the future.

"After participating in many workshops over recent years, the British Office Taipei is pleased to take the natural next step and join the Global Training and Cooperation Framework (GCTF) as a full partner," she said.

In MOFA's statement, Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) welcomed the U.K. into the framework 10 years after it was launched.

The U.K. becoming a full partner in the GCTF symbolizes the continuing deepening of ties between the U.K. and Taiwan and the U.K.'s recognition of Taiwan's contributions to global issues, Lin said in the statement.

Japan, Australia and Canada joined the GCTF as full partners in 2019, 2021 and 2024, respectively.

Since its launch, the GCTF has held 90 international workshops on such topics as public health, law enforcement cooperation, women's empowerment, energy efficiency, e-commerce, cybersecurity, HA/DR, and media literacy.

Over 10,000 government officials, experts, and civil society representatives from 133 countries have participated in these events that have been held locally and in 17 countries worldwide, according to MOFA.