TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) will be delayed for at least another year following a meeting of member states in Canada. 

CPTPP delegates are meeting in Vancouver for the trade agreement’s eighth annual summit. Canada Trade Minister Mary Ng hosted a press conference with other CPTPP members on Thursday (Nov. 28) and said a working group would be established to advance Costa Rica’s application.

Ng said the decision to delay Taiwan’s bid was reached between members over the past year. She said applications are assessed on the ability to meet the agreement’s standards, a history of complying with trade commitments, and consensus among CPTPP members.

Costa Rica applied to join the CPTPP roughly a year after Taiwan applied in 2021. Asked about Taiwan’s bid to join, Ng said the agreement remains “completely open to new members,” but emphasized the need for a consensus among its members to advance any application.  

Ng did not say if member countries’ “one China” policies had prevented Taiwan’s application from moving forward. She said Canada’s “one China” policy is unchanged and reiterated the need for consensus among members to move applications forward.

Politico reported on Thursday that unnamed officials from CPTPP member nations said Taiwan meets the trade standards required to join the agreement. However, the officials added CPTPP members could not reach a consensus on the application.

Vietnam, Singapore, and Malaysia support China’s bid to join the CPTPP, but China is against Taiwan’s accession. China’s application to join, submitted about a week before Taiwan’s in 2021, was also put on hold at the meeting.

Ng said Peru will chair the working group for Costa Rica’s application while New Zealand and Canada will serve as vice-chairs. 

The CPTPP's 11 members are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam. The group approved the UK's application to join last year and Ng said this will be formalized on Dec. 15.