A view of the Taiwan Straits is seen from Xiamen port in East China's Fujian Province. Photo: IC

The signing of the so-called reciprocal trade agreement between China's Taiwan region and the US is a move that constitutes yet another loyalty pledge by the island's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities to the US, experts said.

The move illustrates how the DPP authorities advance their political agenda under the guise of economic and trade arrangements, while reflecting Washington's blatant political maneuver supporting "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, raising serious concerns.

US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer attended the signing of the agreement, under the auspices of the "American Institute in Taiwan" and the "Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office" in the US, according to the website of the Office of the USTR on Thursday.

The USTR claimed that the agreement will eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers facing US exports to the island of Taiwan, "furthering opportunities for American farmers, ranchers, fishermen, workers, small businesses, and manufacturers."

The Taiwan administrative body also issued a statement on Friday, claiming that the so-called trade deal "establishes a reciprocal tariff of 15 percent without stacking."

The DPP authorities conducted "economic and trade negotiations" with the US and signed the so-called agreement, openly disregarding the 1992 Consensus and the one-China principle, experts said. This is a blatant political maneuver by "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, a typical example of the DPP using economic and trade matters to pursue its own political means, Liu Ying, a researcher at the Institute of Taiwan Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Friday.

According to the agreement, the import volume of the Taiwan region from the US that will see tariffs reduced to zero is about $8.39 billion, accounting for 21.6 percent of the island's total imports from the US.

Moreover, to balance the trade deficit, Taiwan region has committed to large-scale purchases from the US between 2025 and 2029, totaling nearly $85 billion, according to CNA, a media outlet in the island of Taiwan, citing data from Taiwan's administrative body.

On a further note, Liu said that the US pressured Taiwan to further open its market, with huge purchases of US products and investment in the US, allowing Washington to reap multiple benefits without significant cost.

Moreover, most of Taiwan's industries and SMEs subject to the "reciprocal tariff" are in traditional sectors, and the 15 percent rate still deals a significant blow, severely reducing their profitability and affecting the security of some supply chains, the expert said, noting that "contrary to claims by the Taiwan authorities, it does not reverse their so-called 'trade disadvantage'."

Combined with the memorandum of understanding on industrial investment cooperation between the US and Taiwan region on January 15, under which the island pledged an additional $250 billion investment by high-tech firms in the US and the Taiwan authorities agreed to provide another $250 billion in financing support, the US has, through these "reciprocal tariff" negotiations, achieved a comprehensive economic extraction from Taiwan region, Liu noted.

The so-called agreement came as the US has consistently maintained a wavering stance on its policy toward the Taiwan region.

Zhou Mi, a senior research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, told the Global Times on Friday that "Only by adhering to fundamental principles and relevant consensuses, including the Taiwan question, can the US hope to further improve bilateral economic and trade relations with China." 

"China-US relations are currently one of the most important bilateral relationships affecting global economic cooperation... If this relationship is disrupted over sovereignty and core interest issues, it would be equally disadvantageous for the US," Zhou said, noting that this "losing the forest for the trees" approach will ultimately be counterproductive.

China has repeatedly expressed its clear stance on the Taiwan question. Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a regular press conference on January 16 that China firmly opposes the negotiating and signing of any agreement with sovereign connotations and an official nature between China's Taiwan region and countries that have diplomatic relations with China. The US needs to earnestly abide by the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiqués, said the spokesperson.

Speaking at a press conference on January 21, Peng Qing'en, a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, slammed the DPP authorities' claim that tariff talks with the US had reached preset goals, saying that the so-called consensus is a "sellout contract" and a "letter of surrender."