Taiwan will set up an office in southern France while Looking forward to continued progress in Taiwan-French relations. Ministry of foreign affairs
THT: Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has resumed its establishment in Guam, the United States, and newly established the “Horn of Africa” Somaliland “Taiwan Representative Office.” The European Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Jiang Sen said today that due to the continuous deepening of cooperation and exchanges between Taiwan and France in the fields of economy, trade, science and technology, culture and education, Taiwan will set up a “Aix-en-Provence” in southern France. “Taipei Office in Provence”, all preparations are in progress. President Tsai Ing-wen said today that the new office will not only serve the people living in Europe, but also promote exchanges and cooperation between Taiwan and France. She looks forward to the continued progress of Taiwan-French relations.
In response to media inquiries at the regular press conference of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Taiwan this morning, Jiang Sen said that the planning of the “Taipei Office in Provence” has been going on for some time, but due to the Wuhan pneumonia epidemic, the staff of the Taiwan Representative Office in France will be approached first. We will go to southern France for survey, and we will explain to the public after the new director is confirmed.
Some media asked whether it was under pressure from Beijing to open an office in southern France this time. Jiang Sen said that he will not particularly comment on this matter now. This is a bilateral matter between Taiwan and France. This new museum is beneficial to both sides.
Jiang Sen pointed out that France is a core member of the European Union, the primary destination and important economic and trade partner for Taiwanese people in Europe. The two sides have broad prospects for cooperation in the economic and trade, aerospace, biomedical and technological industries. The city of Aix-en-Provence and the city of Marseille, the largest port in France, jointly form the “Métropole d’Aix-Marseille-Provence, AMP”, which is located in the middle of the city cluster in southern France and is France The high-speed rail TGV stops at Lyon, the second largest city in France, Montpellier, a global ecological research town, Sophia Antipolis, a cutting-edge scientific research base in France, and Grenoble, the famous French Silicon Valley. Grenoble and Toulouse, a major aerospace town, are well located.
He said that South France is one of the most important destinations for people to travel to France. The “Taipei Office in Provence” serves as the office of the representative office in France in South France. The overseas Chinese will provide better services and will strengthen the economic, trade, and technological industry exchanges between Taiwan and France.
According to data from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, from 2016 to 2019, the number of Taiwanese visiting France has increased by 62%, and the number of French people visiting Taiwan has also increased by nearly 30%. As the exchanges between Taiwan and France have increased significantly, it is expected that the establishment of the office will continue to deepen the friendship and cooperation between Taiwan and France on the basis of the aforementioned exchange results
Tsai Ing-wen posted a post on Facebook in the evening, saying, “Tonight, I want to have some…Provence stew!” She also believes that the establishment of a new office to serve Chinese people in Europe will also promote exchanges and cooperation between Taiwan and France. “I look forward to the continued relations between Taiwan and France. Step forward”.
It has been pointed out that Taiwan lost the three diplomatic countries of Dominica, Burkina Faso and El Salvador in 2018, respectively, but this year has established a third foreign office, including the Guam office that was once closed after 2017. , Will be reopened at the end of this month or early September; on the 17th of this month, Taiwan’s representative office in Somalia will use “Taiwan” instead of “Republic of China” or “Taipei” as its name. The “Taipei Office in Provence” announced this time is expected to be the first year of Taiwan’s diplomatic breakthrough