Organized by Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation (TAEF), the 2022 Yushan Forum is set for this Friday (October 7) at Grand Mayfull Hotel Taipei.
The 6th edition of the Yushan Forum this year has geared up for a full-scale physical comeback since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019, while maintaining its online counterpart to accommodate a broader audience. The Forum will be receiving global leaders, experts, scholars, business leaders, and civil representatives from 12 countries, including Palau, Taiwan’s diplomatic ally; the New Southbound Policy (NSP) partner countries, such as New Zealand, Australia, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia; as well as like-minded countries and regions such as Palau, the United States, Japan, Canada, and Europe. In addition, the Forum is also welcoming a delegation from India, who will be the main guests of an unprecedented high-level Taiwan-India Dialogue taking place at the Forum. Following the pandemic, the Yushan Forum’s line-up highlights the event’s growing importance, along with the readiness of countries to go full force in their revitalization efforts.
The 2022 Yushan Forum is themed “Revitalizing, Reorienting, and Reconnecting.” As the COVID-19 pandemic enters its third year, apart from extending the discussions of resilience and continual regional cooperation set in the previous two years, this year’s theme will expand to focus on pragmatic revitalization agendas in both Taiwan and the NSP countries. In particular, we seek to understand: With Asia set in its unique development context, what countries, frameworks, or policies can serve as a reference for its post-epidemic revitalization work? How should the blueprint for post-epidemic reconstruction be outlined? Another equally important focus of this Forum will be the like-minded countries’ recovery plans and prospects for the Indo-Pacific region.
President Tsai Ing-wen and Dr. Hsin-Huang Michael Hsiao, Chairman of TAEF, will open the forum with their remarks, followed by the remarks of H.E. Surangel S. Whipps, Jr., President of the Republic of Palau; The Right Hon. Winston Peters, New Zealand’s Former Deputy Prime Minister and Former Minister of Foreign Affairs; and The Hon. Keiji FURUYA, Chairman of Japan-ROC Diet Members’ Consultative Council. In addition, The Hon. Taro ASO, the Vice President of Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP, Jiyu-Minshuto) and the former Prime Minister will deliver his remarks by video.
The Forum comprises of Session I, Session II, and the Prospect Asia Roundtable Dialogue. Session I focuses on reviewing the cumulative outcomes of NSP flagship programs and how the results can be derived to foster regional resilience. The moderator, Minister without Portfolio John Chen-Chung Deng will first invite Rose Gottemoeller, the Former Deputy Secretary General of NATO and US Former Undersecretary of State to deliver her speech on establishing a cooperative framework through resilience building in the Indo-Pacific. The floor will then be passed to Deputy Minister Tien, Chung-kwang of Foreign Affairs to moderate the panel discussion, which will be joined by officials of five Taiwanese ministries and the NSP countries to explore opportunities for collaboration in the areas of economy, public health, talent cultivation, agriculture, and cultural exchange.
This year’s Forum will also celebrate the 40-year unwavering friendship between Taiwan and Australia. At the luncheon, The Hon. Julie Bishop, Former Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Chancellor of Australian National University in Australia is invited to deliver her remarks. Moving forward to Session II, TAEF will introduce its latest research publication “Taiwan and Australia: Advancing the Partnership of Four Decades” to set the scene for a discussion on the prospects of Taiwan-Australia ties, which will be joined by an expert from the University of Melbourne in Australia. Moreover, this year’s Forum is delighted to have civic organizations from varying fields joining the panel discussion focusing on Reconnecting Asia with a New Ecosystem of Partnership through Societal Actions, particularly through the Public-Private-People Partnership (PPPP) model. The line-up includes representatives from Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Foundation, Freedom House, Tzu Chi Foundation, the Center of Austronesian Culture at the National Taitung University, a media group from Malaysia that has maintained robust cultural collaboration with Taiwan, and SEMI, the global industry association representing the electronics manufacturing supply chain.
As the finale of each year’s Yushan Forum, the Asia Prospect Roundtable will be honored by Vice President Lai Ching-te and participated by Minister Audrey Tang of the Digital Affairs and leaders from the New Southbound Policy countries, such as Thailand, New Zealand, the Philippines, India, and Indonesia, and like-minded countries like Luxembourg. They will dive into major issues concerning the Indo-Pacific as a whole (including maritime partnerships; regional security and stability; information and communication, infrastructure; visions for the economy, trade, and investment; and smart medical industry) and explore collective solutions to address the corresponding challenges. Following the closure of the forum, the guests will be hosted by the Minister Jaushieh Joseph Wu of Foreign Affairs at dinner, where The Hon. Peter MacKay, Canada’s Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Former Minister of National Defence, and The Hon. Yasuhide NAKAYAMA, Japan’s Former State Minister of Defense are invited to deliver their remarks.
Entering its sixth year, the Yushan Forum continues to bring more global leaders, from the public and private sectors and civil society to engage in diverse dialogues to drive development through regional synergy. Coined as the “diplomacy at home," the Yushan Forum serves as a paramount platform for the international community to share their ideas and suggestions for the NSP to take it forward. At these dynamic times, Taiwan as a critical world player should be fully involved in the agendas of the region.