TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan wants closer mutually beneficial cooperation with India, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Monday (June 10).
India is a key target country for Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy, MOFA said. Taiwan wants to promote bilateral cooperation in trade and semiconductor technology, which will facilitate peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region, the ministry added.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was sworn in for a third term on Sunday (June 9) after winning the general election, which concluded on June 1. President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) congratulated Modi in an X post, saying he looked forward to “enhancing the fast-growing Taiwan-India partnership” in trade and technology.
Modi thanked Lai and said he was eager to build a closer “mutually beneficial economic and technological partnership.”
The social media exchange provoked China’s ire. The Chinese foreign ministry said it opposed all official interactions between the “Taiwanese authorities” and countries diplomatically aligned with China.
New Delhi has made “serious political commitments” to Beijing's position regarding Taiwan and must “recognize, be alarmed about and resist the Taiwan authorities’ political calculations,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning (毛寧) said on June 6. “China has protested to India about this,” Mao added.
Taiwan signed a memorandum of understanding on labor cooperation with India in February to address labor shortages in the manufacturing, construction, agriculture, and fishery industries. Talks began as early as 2020 but were halted during the pandemic. Negotiations resumed after the pandemic waned and the deal was largely finalized in September.
