March 31, 2023
Press Release no. 095
The first meeting of the New Zealand All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Taiwan took place in a conference room of the parliamentary building on the evening of March 29. Twenty-two parliamentarians from various parties joined the newly formed APPG, including the four major ones—Labour, National, Green, and ACT. In addition to the APPG co-chairs, MP Simon O’Connor of the National Party and MP Ingrid Leary of the ruling Labour Party, the launch was attended by 13 other MPs of different political affiliations, including MP David Seymour, leader of the ACT Party.
The government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) extended its congratulations through prerecorded video messages from Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaushieh Joseph Wu and Legislative Yuan member Lin Chu-yin, who is chair of the Taiwan-New Zealand Inter-Parliamentary Amity Association (IPAA). Taiwan’s Representative to New Zealand Joanne Ou was also invited to deliver remarks.
Addressing the launch, APPG Co-chair O’Connor welcomed attending MPs from various parties to the friendship group in order to support Taiwan, deepen cordial bilateral relations and economic and trade exchanges, and defend the security and stability of the Indo-Pacific. MP Leary of the Labour Party, APPG Co-chair, said Taiwan and New Zealand enjoy close economic and trade exchanges and share the values of democracy, freedom, and human rights. She said she hoped the establishment of the APPG would further enhance interactions between the two countries.
Representative Ou thanked the two co-chairs for bringing together parliamentarians from different political parties to set up the APPG, opening a new chapter in Taiwan-New Zealand relations. She also urged the New Zealand Parliament to support Taiwan’s bid for membership of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and participation in international bodies such as the World Health Organization.
Minister Wu said in his prerecorded video remarks that the launch of the APPG marked an important milestone in ties between Taiwan and New Zealand. He added that the event held special significance since it coincided with the 10th anniversary of the Taiwan-New Zealand economic cooperation agreement (ANZTEC). Minister Wu noted that Taiwan and New Zealand are both founding members of the Indigenous Peoples Economic and Trade Cooperation Arrangement, and expressed the hope that the New Zealand Parliament would further support Taiwan’s entry into the CPTPP to comprehensively deepen bilateral exchanges.
Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan established the IPAA on February 24. IPAA Chair Lin stated in her prerecorded video remarks that the successive launch of friendship associations by the Taiwan and New Zealand parliaments showed that the cross-party consensus in both countries is to strengthen bilateral interactions. She said she was looking forward to a visit to Taiwan by APPG members in the near future to advance economic and trade exchanges and jointly defend the values of freedom, democracy, and human rights. (E)