Cityscape of Taipei, Taiwan, January 12, 2024.
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China is studying further trade measures against Taiwan, the Commerce Department said on Saturday, two days after Beijing lashed out at a speech by Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te.
The Ministry of Commerce issued a statement on its official website saying that Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party has not yet taken any practical measures to lift “trade restrictions” on mainland China.
Currently, relevant departments are studying further measures based on the findings of the Taiwan (Mainland) trade barrier investigation.
China regards democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and detests Lai as a “separatist”. Lai and his government reject Beijing’s sovereignty claims, saying only the people of Taiwan can determine their future.
On Thursday, Jimmy Lai said in a National Day keynote speech that the People’s Republic of China has no right to represent Taiwan, but Taiwan is willing to work with Beijing to address challenges such as climate change, in a tone that was both firm and conciliatory, sparking anger from China.
China’s Commerce Ministry’s statement on Saturday could foreshadow tariffs or other forms of economic pressure on Taiwan in the near future.
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office said on Thursday that Jimmy Lai’s speech promoted “separatist ideas” and incited confrontation, and responded that the root cause behind the trade dispute was “the Democratic Progressive Party authorities’ stubborn insistence on the ‘Taiwan independence’ stance.”
“The political basis makes it difficult for cross-Strait trade disputes to be resolved through negotiations,” it added.
In May, China reinstated tariffs on 134 goods imported from Taiwan after Beijing’s Finance Ministry said it would suspend concessions on those goods under the trade deal due to a lack of response from Taiwan.
The Cross-Strait Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) between China and Taiwan was originally signed in 2010, and Taiwanese officials have previously told Reuters that China may pressure Lai by terminating some of its preferential trade terms.
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