Indian, Taiwanese think tanks join hands to foster cooperation in Indo-Pacific region

NEW DELHI: The Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation (TAEF), a leading think tank from Taiwan has signed a memorandum with India’s National Maritime Foundation (NMF) in order to foster cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region as part of Taiwan’s South bound policy.

The two groups will set up a joint task force to deepen bilateral dialogue, reported Taiwan’s Central News Agency. The memorandum’s aim is to conduct joint research and expand cooperation. The Memorandum was signed last week.

The TAEF, the organizer of the fourth edition of the Yushan Forum, will wait until coronavirus (COVID-19) travel restrictions are over before sending a delegation to India to hold direct talks, a foundation official said that day.


The island nation named India as one of its New Southbound Policy target countries in 2016.

Founded in 2018, the Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation (TAEF) is the first policy-oriented think tank in Taiwan with a focus on Southeast Asian and South Asian affairs. In the spirit of the New Southbound Policy (NSP), the goal of the TAEF is to promote comprehensive ties between Taiwan and the 10 ASEAN countries, six South Asian states, as well as Australia and New Zealand through cooperation and exchanges in three major fields – including think tanks, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and young leaders – to consolidate a sense of regional community in Asia and establish long-term cooperative partnerships.