Taipei, Sept. 21 (CNA) The United Kingdom’s Trade Envoy to Taiwan Richard Faulkner will conduct a week-long visit in Taiwan to strengthen U.K.-Taiwan trade and investment relations, the British Office Taipei said in a statement Thursday.
The envoy, who arrived Thursday evening and will depart on Sept. 28, is scheduled to meet with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Sept. 25 and discuss bilateral economic and trade collaboration with Economic Affairs Minister Wang Mei-hua (王美花), the office said.
Faulkner will also celebrate the 40th anniversary of Chevening scholarships with Taiwanese partners and Chevening alumni, and give a keynote address at the Better Business Awards ceremony hosted by the British Chamber of Commerce in Taipei, the office said.
Meanwhile, Faulkner will discuss the U.K.’s renewable energy experience in Penghu County and also attend the UK-Taiwan Net Zero Academic Research Forum on Sept. 26, to enhance research collaboration on transitioning to net zero in a just and sustainable way, the office added.
The office said that Faulkner was looking forward to visiting Taiwan again and contributing to deepening the partnership between the two sides, adding that “bilateral links have grown stronger and deeper since my last visit in 2018. “
The office said that the U.K. and Taiwan started official talks in July as part of the new UK-Taiwan Enhanced Trade Partnership that covered topics including energy and net-zero, digital trade and two-way investment.
The office added that both sides share the goal of reaching net zero by 2050 and have been collaborating on renewable energy development and climate transition plans for almost 20 years.
Faulkner will lead 10 British renewable energy businesses participating in the 18th U.K.-Taiwan Renewable Energy Conference on Friday and will share U.K. best practices on offshore wind development and emerging technologies such as low carbon hydrogen and smart grid, the office said.
Earlier this month, the first U.K. semiconductors business delegation — comprising 19 businesses — participated in 2023 SEMICON Taiwan, where it sought out trade and investment opportunities and R&D collaboration with Taiwan, the office said.
Trade between the U.K. and Taiwan has been growing in recent years and reached £8.6 billion (US$10.6 billion) in 2022. Goods exported from the U.K. to Taiwan were also up 18.2 percent in 2022 compared to 2021.
