Former Economy Minister Lin Hsin-i To Represent Taiwan at APEC 2024

TaiwanPlus News

Lin Hsin-i, a former economy minister and vice premier, will lead Taiwan's delegation to APEC 2024 in Peru. China reportedly pressured Peru to reject Taiwan's first pick, former Vice President Chen Chien-jen, for being "too political."

Transcript

00:00Taiwan's representative for APEC has been officially announced.

00:03Lin Xingyi, who previously served as vice-premier and economy minister, will lead Taiwan's delegation

00:10to the Economic Forum in Peru in November.

00:12Rhys Ayers joins us now live with more from Taipei.

00:15Rhys, what can you tell us about this pick?

00:21Well Joyce, 77-year-old Lin Xingyi certainly fits the bill.

00:25He's a current senior advisor to President Lai Ching-de and also to the Economic Development

00:32Committee.

00:33And over the last few decades, Lin has worn many, many, many hats in both the public and

00:38private sectors.

00:40Privately, he's got managerial experience in the automobile and insurance industries.

00:47In the public sector, he served as the economy minister and then as the vice-premier of Taiwan

00:55in the early 2000s under the Chen Shui-bian administration.

00:59Since then, he's served as an advisor to two further DPP presidents, including Tsai Ing-wen

01:05and of course, current President Lai Ching-de.

01:09He's also known for having a strong knowledge and understanding of Taiwan's industrial development

01:16and more generally, economics and world economy.

01:20He's also known for his diplomacy skills.

01:23Lin was actually part of the APEC delegation in 2000 and 2001, and he was then sent to

01:31APEC Korea 2005 as the lead delegate, where he actually met with the then-president of

01:38China, Hu Jintao, and they actually shook hands in a rare display of warming of relations

01:44between China and Taiwan.

01:48But perhaps most importantly for Lin is that he has no official party affiliation here

01:55in Taiwan.

01:56Now, that's key because Taiwan's first pick for APEC 2024 was actually Chen Jian-ren,

02:04and he was the former vice-president of Taiwan, and he was considered too political a pick

02:10for China, too senior.

02:12China vetoed that decision, which has now led to Lin being sent in his place.

02:19He's not quite as senior, and there are hopes with Lin that with his more humble approach

02:26to diplomacy and his mix of experience in the public and private sector, that not only

02:32will he be able to stimulate some economic opportunities for Taiwan, that also as current

02:39Chinese President Xi Jinping will be there in Peru, that Lin will be able to offer another

02:45olive branch of sorts to Beijing.

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