According to Yu Shi-kun, Chairman of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), “Taiwan is ready to boost its cooperation with India on all fronts with the help of the TICC”. Yu was speaking at the inaugural ceremony for the new association. He was elected chairman of the TICC board at its first board meeting, held earlier in the day.

“The TICC is aimed at strengthening economic, trade, parliamentary, artistic and cultural ties between Taiwan and India”, Yu said. “Establishing the new council also complements the government's 'Go South' policy. Taiwan and India share a common focus because India is looking east, and Taiwan is going south”. Information technology and infrastructure development are two sectors where Taiwan and India can work together, according to former Minister of Economic Affairs Ho Mei-yueh, who was also present at the inaugural ceremony. Ms Ho added that, “India can serve as an important springboard for Taiwanese businesses to extend their reach into Europe”.

Citing such factors as growth in bilateral trade, an increasing number of Indian engineers working in Taiwan, frequent parliamentary visits and direct flights between the two countries, Yu concluded that the development of Taiwan-India relations had enjoyed rapid and steady growth.

“India is seen as having the most potential among the four golden BRIC countries”, Yu said – referring to Brazil, Russia, India and China. According to popular theory, these four countries have the economic potential to become dominant economies by 2050. Besides Taiwan's collaboration with India on software and computer hardware, India's overall economic strength will provide even more opportunities for economic and trade cooperation, he said.

The idea of setting up a Taiwan-India association reportedly dates back to a seminar held in Taipei in November 2004. The “India-Japan-Taiwan Trialogue” was organised by Taiwan Thinktank back when Yu was still the ROC premier.

Speaking on the same occasion, Arun Sahgal, deputy director of research and head of the Centre for Strategic Studies and Simulation of the United Service Institution of India, said India is now seeking closer engagement with East Asia and attaches great importance to its ties with Taiwan.

Sahgal, who was attending the ceremony on his second visit to Taiwan, said he believes both sides will benefit from enhanced cooperation. According to Sahgal, India is attractive to Taiwanese investors because of the size of its labor force, lower production costs and enormous market potential. Shagal also said that, as a developing country, India can learn from Taiwan's experience.

“The relationship between Taiwan and India will primarily be economics. The economics will drive our relationship for now, and that's how it should be”, Sahgal said, adding, “Through enhanced bilateral ties, we hope that eventually it will lead to more Taiwanese investment in India”. The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) will reportedly try to persuade Taiwanese companies to tap the Indian market as part of efforts to disperse overseas Taiwanese investment, which is now overwhelmingly concentrated in China.

The MOEA reported in late January that two-way trade between Taiwan and India grew at a brisk pace in 2005, with the first 11 months of the year amounting to US$2.27 billion, a nearly 30-percent increase over the previous year.

Despite the rapid expansion between the two countries, Taiwan's trade with India only accounted for 0.67 percent of Taiwan's total foreign trade, with India-Taiwan trade making up a mere 0.87 percent of India's total foreign trade. This indicates that there is ample room for the two countries to further expand economic ties, the MOEA's Bureau of Foreign Trade pointed out.

It was also reported that the MOEA is planning to organise a trade mission to India this year as part of an initiative to help Taiwanese firms break into and grab a larger slice of the emerging Indian market.

Meanwhile, a cross-party Taiwanese legislative delegation led by DPP legislator Hou Shui-sheng departed for India on February 13 to promote bilateral parliamentary exchanges.

Hou heads a Taiwan-India parliamentary amity panel, made up of members from the ruling DPP, the Kuomintang, the People First Party and the Taiwan Solidarity Union. On February 11, Hou reported that the delegation would meet with Indian parliamentarians to advance mutual understanding and friendship.

“We hope to get a better understanding of India's political and economic situation through the upcoming visit”, Hou said, adding that the visit is expected to help promote cooperation in various fields.