Cabinet Holds Cross-Party Meeting on Trump Tariff Response Plan

TaiwanPlus News

Taiwan's Cabinet has held a closed-door cross-party meeting to rally support for a US$2.7 billion package to help out local businesses. President Lai Ching-te has already ruled out retaliatory action to Trump's 32% tariff on Taiwanese goods.

Transcript

00:00An emergency meeting led by Taiwan's premier, which includes the heads of all three major

00:08parties.

00:09The goal?

00:10To unite across the political spectrum and safeguard the economy against the U.S.'s new

00:1532 percent tariff on Taiwanese goods.

00:19Taiwan's President Lai Ching-teh already ruling out reciprocal action in a video address to

00:25the nation.

00:26Taiwan has no plans to impose tariffs on the U.S.

00:30As long as the U.S. promises to invest in the U.S., there will be no change.

00:38Lai has put forward a five-measure plan to deal with the U.S. tariffs, including negotiations

00:44setting zero tariffs as the basis, as well as a $2.7 billion U.S. dollar support package

00:51for local firms proposed by the Cabinet.

00:54The challenge now?

00:55Getting the plan approved by the opposition-led legislature, which has been mired in partisan

01:01spats that have even turned physical in some cases.

01:05Tensions between the ruling Democratic Progressive Party and the main opposition, Kuomintang,

01:10apparent in the latest meeting.

01:14The task of rallying everyone together, falling on Premier Zuo Rongtai.

01:20Before the closed-door meeting, Kuomintang's caucus whip Fu Kunzhi called out Lai's government

01:25for not being more prepared for Trump's 32 percent tariff, pointing to money saved by

01:31the KMT-led budget cuts that went through months of political wrangling now as a lifeline.

01:50The ruling party's spokesperson Justin Wu slamming the Kuomintang's statement, saying

01:58the opposition's budget cuts have been weakening the central government's capabilities to respond

02:04to something like the U.S. tariffs.

02:09The ruling party now looking for all parties to set aside political differences to face

02:15Trump's tariffs head-on and fulfill a tall order set by President Lai of, quote,

02:21a golden age of shared prosperity with the United States.

02:25Fu Huahong and Justin for Taiwan Plus.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended