TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC, 大陸委員會) on Wednesday (Sept. 18) criticized China's decision to cancel tariff exemptions on Taiwanese agricultural products, calling it a politically motivated move that undermines cross-strait relations.
The council made this statement after China announced it would end the tariff exemptions on 34 Taiwanese agricultural products starting Sept. 25.
The MAC argued that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP, 中國共產黨) uses trade as a weapon and views preferential measures as tools of coercion, which could provoke adverse reactions among Taiwanese farmers and the public. The council believes such actions are counterproductive to the long-term development of cross-strait relations.
The council emphasized that Taiwan's Ministry of Agriculture (MOA, 農業部) has been actively guiding the transformation and upgrading of domestic agricultural products. This effort aims to diversify export markets and reduce reliance on the Chinese market, thereby protecting the rights and interests of farmers.