Deputy USTR to Visit Taiwan May 24-27

PR0624E | Date: 2006-05-17

The American Institute in Taiwan is pleased to announce that Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Karan Bhatia will travel to Taiwan May 24 to 27 as part of his visit to Asia to advance the U.S. trade agenda. He will also visit India and Vietnam.

"We have a very active trade agenda in this dynamic and rapidly growing region," said Ambassador Bhatia. "With our recent bilateral market access agreement with Vietnam, a vigorous trade discussion with India and our ongoing engagement with Taiwan, we are demonstrating that we are eager to deepen our relationship with our Asian neighbors."

Ambassador Bhatia will lead an interagency delegation that will participate in two-day meetings under the AIT-TECRO (American Institute in Taiwan - Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office) Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA).

The TIFA was established in 1994 to resolve bilateral trade issues and enhance economic cooperation. Discussions under the TIFA will cover a wide range of important bilateral trade issues including agriculture, enforcement of intellectual property rights, pharmaceuticals, and telecommunications policy. This will be Ambassador Bhatia's first trip to Taiwan in his role as Deputy USTR; he will be the most senior US official to visit Taiwan in six years. He will be accompanied by Assistant USTR for China Tim Stratford.