Supporting Taiwan’s participation in COP28

The dangerous impact of climate change on humanity is becoming increasingly apparent and urgent, as evidenced by such phenomena as the wildfires this year in Maui, Hawaii, and the record-high temperatures worldwide in July. As a responsible member of the international community, Taiwan has launched a series of actions this year to combat climate change.

Domestically, President Tsai Ing-wen announced the amendment and renaming of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction and Management Act, which became the Climate Change Response Act in February, making Taiwan the 18th country in the world to codify the 2050 net-zero emissions goal into law. Moreover, its Environmental Protection Administration was restructured into the Ministry of Environment to accelerate its efforts to enhance government capacity in August. The Climate Change Administration and the Resource Circulation Administration were concurrently established to integrate the handling of environmental issues. Thirdly, Taiwan officially established the Taiwan Carbon Solution Exchange in August, aiming to create incentives for businesses to reduce their carbon emissions.

Internationally, Taiwan hosted the first Pacific Climate Change Forum in Taipei in July and signed the first Joint Statement on Combating Climate Change with the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, and Tuvalu. In response to the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and supply-chain decarbonization trends, Taiwan has accelerated efforts to implement carbon pricing and carbon inventory mechanisms. Moreover, Taiwan has incorporated environmental issues into negotiations with the United States under the Taiwan-US Initiative on 21st-Century Trade and with the United Kingdom for the Enhanced Trade Partnership.

The aforementioned actions demonstrate Taiwan’s continuous efforts to pragmatically seek opportunities to contribute to the international community. Climate change does not discriminate, and mechanisms to address climate change such as the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement should not discriminate against Taiwan due to political reasons. In the spirit of professionalism, pragmatism, and making contributions, we urge our Filipino friends to back Taiwan’s participation in the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) of the UNFCCC, ongoing in Dubai until Dec. 12. Support Taiwan in working with the international community toward a net-zero world.