Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Chairwoman Lai Shin-yuan said Tuesday the committee that will be set up after Taiwan and China sign an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) will be totally different from the Joint Steering Committee established by Hong Kong and China. Taiwan and China have agreed to set up an Economic Cooperation Committee (ECC) , composed of delegates from both sides, to handle follow-up negotiations and arrangements related to the ECFA after it is signed. The ECFA is generally a framework agreement and much of it's contents will have to be worked out through bilateral negotiations after it is signed, Lai told reporters before delivering a report at the Legislative Yuan on the progress of the latest round of formal ECFA talks. The ECC will serve as a platform for follow-up arrangements, just like the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement between Taiwan and the United States, she said. The ECC will definitely be different from the Joint Steering Committee (JSE), which was set up on the basis of the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement between Hong Kong and China, in that Taiwan and China are to be represented equally on the ECC while the JSE is between a central government (China ) and a local government (Hong Kong), she said. Many similar bodies are operating between countries that have forged free trade agreements, including the one between the United States and Australia, Singapore and Japan, and Malaysia and New Zealand, she added. Lai dismissed criticisms that the ECC is just a cross-strait version of the JSC, saying that such comments denigrate Taiwan's status. Taiwan and China are expected to sign the ECFA by early next month. 