Fruit and seafood are the latest front in escalating Taiwan-China tensions
Taiwan says China’s ban on imports of its fruit, vegetables, seafood and other goods violate trade rules, in the latest ratcheting up of tensions between the self-governing island republic and its massive neighbor, which has vowed to annex Taiwan by force
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan said Thursday that China's ban on imports of its fruit, vegetables, seafood and other goods violates trade rules, in the latest escalation of tensions between the self-governing island republic and its massive neighbor, which claims Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to annex it by military means.
The Taiwanese government’s Mainland Affairs Council said the ban, which takes effect next week, ignores rules laid out by the World Trade Organization, of which both sides are members.
The move comes amid growing military, political and economic pressure on Taiwan’s government to concede to Beijing’s control. Taiwan’s semi-tropical climate and fertile soil have nurtured an agricultural industry valued at around $500 billion dollars, alongside high-tech corporations that produce the world’s most cutting-edge computer chips.
China's move “harms the interests of farmers” on both sides of the Taiwan Strait and does nothing to improve relations between the two, the council said. China and Taiwan should seek dialogue through the WTO to resolve their differences, it added.
