Taiwan is ‘open to free trade accord’ with Switzerland

Taiwan's representative in Bern, David Huang, said he had observed a Swiss tendency of “excessive caution” out of fear of angering Beijing - not only in politics but also in business relations. Keystone / Ritchie B. Tongo

Taiwan’s top official in Switzerland says there is room for more “pragmatic cooperation” between the Asian island state and the Alpine nation, including a trade accord.

“Taiwan is open to a trade agreement with Switzerland,” Taiwan’s representative in Bern, David Huang, toldExternal link the Aargauer Zeitung newspaper on Monday, adding that there is “more scope for pragmatic cooperation”.

Switzerland does not officially recognise the Asian island state of Taiwan. Nevertheless, it maintains relations – through intricate channels. In recent years there have been repeated calls for a free-trade agreement with Taiwan. For Switzerland, Taiwan is the fifth-largest export market in Asia, with an increasing trade volume.

But the Swiss government doesn’t want to provoke China with an agreement with Taiwan.

Huang said he had observed a Swiss tendency towards “excessive caution” out of fear of angering Beijing – not only in politics but also in business relations. This results in “psychological self-censorship” and in Swiss officials and many Swiss companies preferring not to deal with Taiwan at all in order to save themselves the trouble, he said.

According to the Aargauer Zeitung, the government fears that an agreement with Taiwan could push Switzerland’s planned renewal of the 2013 Swiss-Chinese free-trade agreement even further into the future. China put talks on hold in 2018 and has since refused to resume dialogue.

Voices in Switzerland too have become louder calling for closer relations with Taiwan – recently with another motionExternal link in parliament wanting to deepen them in various areas. Politicians from several parties have pointed out Switzerland’s significant dependence on China and are calling for closer ties with Taiwan, while others want to avoid conflict with China if possible because of the close economic ties.

“As democratic, export-oriented small states, Switzerland and Taiwan both have a great interest in the international order functioning on the basis of rules and not relying on the will of the strongest,” said Huang.

Although Switzerland has always had good relations with China thanks to its early networking with Beijing, when it comes to Taiwan, its room for manoeuvre has shrunk with the nationalism fanned by President Xi Jinping.

Worldwide, fewer than two dozen nations recognise Taiwan as a state and maintain diplomatic relations. Many more – including Switzerland – use unofficial channels of communication.