The diplomatic philosophy of Taiwan (R.O.C) is to open to the world and strive to build friendly friendships with all countries. In the current global strategic overview, Taiwan has put much more effort than ever to win more international supports. 2019 has been a year of fruitful achievements of diplomacy, and the level of exchanges and the cooperation spectrum between Taiwan and countries with similar ideas have been enhanced.
Since "New Southbound Policy" has promoted, Taiwan and New Southbound partners have successfully created a mutually beneficial and win-win cooperative relationship. In terms of economic and trade cooperation, Taiwan's total volume of trade with 18 partner countries has increased by 3.4% compared with the previous period, and its total exports have increased by approximately US $ 2.4 billion. As of the third quarter of 2019, Taiwan's total trade with New Southbound countries has reached 83.1 billion U.S. dollars.
In terms of personnel exchanges, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has promoted several visa relaxation measures step by step, expanded the conditions for "conditional visa-free" since 2016, and has helped attract New Southbound partner countries to visit Taiwan to make negotiations of business. Visitors from New Southbound countries to Taiwan have grown 56.6% over the previous year, accounting for 21.6% of the total arrivals to Taiwan. In 2018, nearly 52,000 students from New Southbound countries came to Taiwan with an annual increase of 25%. The number of students from Taiwan to New Southbound countries has exceeded 21,000. For the first time in 2019, the historical relics of the National Place Museum stretch to the southern hemisphere and are exhibited in Australia that received a great response. It has also written the next chapter for Taiwan-Australia cultural exchange.
In terms of resource sharing, Taiwan has accumulated rich experiences and excellent achievements in the medical and health field for many years. In 2018, the number of patients coming to Taiwan from New Southbound countries reached 157,000, with a 52.4% increase compared to 2017. The Ministry of Health and Welfare will be continuing to promote the "One Country, One Center" program in 2019, which will help strengthen medical cooperations and talent training between Taiwan's medical centers and New Southbound countries and assist our medical industry in expanding the New Southbound market.
In terms of regional links, since the "New Southbound Policy" has been promoted, Taiwan has worked hard to find a more advantageous strategic position in the international community. The United States Department of State’s “A FREE AND OPEN INDO-PACIFIC: ADVANCING A SHARED VISION” report released in November this year stating that the United States ’“ Indo-Pacific Strategy ” is closely aligned with Taiwan ’s“ New Southbound Policy ”, Japan ’s“ Free and Open Indo-Pacific Strategy ”, and India ’s“ Eastward Engagements"... etc.
Diplomacy is a work that connects the past and the future, and it never stops. In the spirit of "Practical Diplomacy, Mutual Benefit", the government has actively opened up a new international stage for Taiwan and demonstrated Taiwan's incomparable vitality, professionalism, and innovation capabilities to the world.
