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| World strongly supports cross-strait pact |
 The international community has voiced its support of the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) signed June 29 between Taiwan and mainland China for its promise to aid stability in Asia and lift trade. Foreign nations and bodies shared their hopes for cross-strait interactions to continue to be expanded.
On June 29, a U.S. Department of State official said, “The United States welcomes the increased dialogue and interaction” and hopes that relations between the two sides “will continue to expand and develop.” The cross-strait economic pact would, the speaker continued, help to increase trade and lead to a more stable Asia.
Catherine Ashton, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, issued a statement June 30 affirming that the signing of the ECFA “contributes significantly to stability and security in East Asia.” The statement went on to read, “The European Union believes that the expansion of cross-strait economic relations has a potential also to benefit the development of its already significant trade and investment links in East Asia.”
The WTO Secretariat’s Trade Policy Review on Taiwan points out that a cross-strait economic agreement would help improve relations across the Taiwan Strait and could also prove beneficial to Taiwan in signing free trade agreements (FTAs) with its major trading partners. Taiwan will then be better equipped to meet the challenges created by FTAs signed by other Asian nations.
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