Taiwan Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Chung Kwang Tien
TAIPEI: The Taiwanese government is seriously considering extending visa-on-arrival for Indians, Taiwan Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Chung Kwang Tien said on Tuesday.
"We are considering it seriously. Talks are going on with various departments," deputy minister Tien told a team of visiting media persons here, pointing out that more than 3,000 Indian students are currently studying in Taiwan.
The arrangement, if it clears the official procedures, would make trips to the South East Asian country hassle-free and convenient for Indian citizens. At present, Thailand allows Indians to travel visa-free till November while Malaysia has the arrangement till December. Incidentally, Hong Kong, though part of China, allows Indians to travel without a visa if the stay is only up to 14 days.
Sri Lanka and Mauritius, too, have extended the facility to Indian citizens.
The relationship between India and Taiwan� officially known as Republic of China� is getting increasingly closer due to that country’s role in high-tech manufacture and also because of the China factor.
When asked about China's angry reaction earlier this month to Taiwan's recently elected President's greetings to Narendra Modi becoming the Prime Minister, Minister Tien said China should not have unreasonably interfered into the friendly exchange on social media between two leaders of other countries.
Expressing happiness over relations with India, he said, “As India is no longer the country we used to know, our neighbour is not very happy about the strong ties between India and China. It was not easy to sustain with a hostile neighbour," he added.
China is a big country, both in terms of military might and size of economy, and they have been
Bullying Taiwan, he said. “But our perseverance paid off. Our newfound friends, who have the same interest, support Taiwan. Thanks to Indian Prime Minister Modi,” the deputy minister said.
Taiwan’s new southbound policies through mutual prosperity, benefits, sharing and consensus have paid off by creating closer friendship with India and ASEAN countries, he said. "We no longer depend on a single market (China)," he added.