《TAIPEI TIMES》 Taiwan, Thailand sign bilateral investment agreement

/ Staff writer, with CNA

Taiwan and Thailand have signed an agreement to promote and protect bilateral investment and trade, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations （OTN） said on Friday.

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The agreement on “Promotion and Protection of Investments” was signed by Representative to Thailand Chang Chun-fu （張俊福） and Thailand Trade and Economic Office in Taipei executive director Narong Boonsatheanwong on Thursday, the OTN said in a news release.

Thailand has become the fifth trading partner to sign an investment agreement with Taiwan since 2016, following earlier agreements with the Philippines, India, Vietnam and Canada, the OTN said.

The deal marks a significant milestone in the development of economic and trade relations between Taiwan and Thailand, it said.

The two sides previously signed an investment agreement in 1996, but as businesses have evolved and diversified that deal no longer met the needs of overseas investors, it said.

The new agreement was negotiated to provide more comprehensive protections and boost investor confidence, by ensuring that investment information remains transparent while a designated window is established to handle investment-related matters, the OTN said.

Information transparency means whenever there are new investment-related regulations or measures are amended, they must be announced immediately so businesses can more easily evaluate and formulate business plans, it added.

Meanwhile, the two sides would be required to establish a designated window to answer investment-related questions, allowing investors to quickly understand changes to the investment environment, it said.

Based on trade and investment statistics, since the implementation of the government’s New Southbound Policy in 2016, bilateral trade between Taiwan and Thailand has increased 74.6 percent from US$9.3 billion to US$16.24 billion, it said.

During this period, bilateral investment has also risen by 119.8 percent from US$3.18 billion to US$6.99 billion, reflecting Thailand’s status as one of Taiwan’s main trading and investment partners in ASEAN.

Exports of Taiwanese products to Thailand mainly include electrical components as well as machinery and other related parts, and it is also the Southeast Asian country’s largest supplier of integrated circuits.

In other news, Taiwan and Somaliland officials discussed energy and mineral exchanges as well as potential cooperation during Somaliland Minister of Energy and Minerals Abdilahi Farah Abdi’s visit on Thursday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs （MOFA） said.

In a statement, MOFA said Abdi during a banquet on Thursday night highlighted Taiwan’s crucial role as an international development partner for Somaliland, and the African country’s abundant energy and mineral resources.

He expressed hope that the Taiwan-Somaliland energy and minerals meeting would boost Taiwanese business recognition of the African country’s investment potential, fostering long-term and mutually beneficial relations, MOFA said.

Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Remus Chen （陳立國） said the two nations signed an energy and minerals cooperation agreement in 2022, followed by an inaugural joint working group meeting on energy and minerals in Somaliland last year.

Abdi’s visit to Taiwan aims to deepen cooperation in exploring and developing oil, gas and strategic minerals, Chen said.

The two countries are committed to freedom and democracy, he said.

Taiwan and Somaliland have closely cooperated since establishing representative offices in 2020, Chen added.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES