Lai calls for progress on unsigned Taiwan-Canada trade framework

Taipei, Oct. 14 (CNA) President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) on Wednesday expressed hope for progress on a proposed trade cooperation framework between Taiwan and Canada that remains unsigned, as he called for closer bilateral economic and industrial cooperation.

During a meeting with Canadian lawmakers at the Presidential Office in Taipei, Lai said he hoped the Taiwan-Canada Trade Cooperation Framework Arrangement (TCFA) would move forward with their support.

The delegation was led by Judy Sgro, a Liberal Party lawmaker who is also chair of the Canada-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group and the House of Commons Standing Committee on International Trade.

The proposed TCFA, aimed at strengthening bilateral trade and economic cooperation, remains unsigned despite its text having been finalized in March 2025, according to a September response to Parliament by Global Affairs Canada, the country's foreign ministry.

The ministry said the framework is still being considered for signature but provided no timetable.

Lai said Taiwan's strengths in semiconductors and information and communications technology, alongside Canada's advantages in artificial intelligence (AI), energy and critical minerals, make their economies "highly complementary" as AI drives global industrial transformation.

He said those strengths presented "extensive opportunities for bilateral cooperation," adding that the two sides had expanded cooperation in trade, technology, supply chains and maritime security in recent years.

Noting that Taiwan is Canada's sixth-largest trading partner in Asia, Lai said he hopes both sides would "build on their respective strengths and promote even more substantive cooperation" to create new opportunities for their industries and people.

According to Taiwan's International Trade Administration, bilateral merchandise trade totaled US$4.89 billion in 2025, up 5.6 percent from a year earlier.

During Wednesday's meeting, Lai also thanked Canadian lawmakers for their support, citing a cross-party parliamentary motion countering what he described as China's distortion of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758, as well as efforts by Sgro and the House of Commons Standing Committee on International Trade to advance the TCFA.

Speaking after Lai, Sgro said Canada and Taiwan enjoy "a robust and growing relationship," citing cooperation in trade, investment, education, science, innovation, culture and tourism.

She said strong relationships are built "not only through formal agreements, but also through sustained dialogue, mutual respect, and personal connections."

However, the delegation leader made no specific mention of the TCFA in her remarks.

Sgro, who is visiting Taiwan for the sixth time, said the delegation aimed to deepen parliamentary dialogue and better understand the Indo-Pacific, a region she described as "increasingly important to Canada's future prosperity and security."

"Please know that Canada is a friend and a partner," she said, adding that "Canada will be standing next to Taiwan."