In the face of former US president Donald Trump’s re-election, government officials are hopeful that Taiwan-US relations would continue to improve under the new administration, while an expert said that Taiwan should not solely rely on the US.
During his campaign, Trump accused Taiwan of “stealing” the US chip business and repeatedly said he wants to charge the nation a “defense fee.”
Trump clearly feels that Taiwan is not contributing enough and that it should not solely rely on the US, Tamkang University Graduate Institute of International Affairs and Strategic Studies director Li Da-jung (李大中) said yesterday in an interview with NOWnews.
Photo: Fang Wei-li, Taipei Times
Trump’s proposed “defense fee” would hurt major US companies like Apple, Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices and Intel, as TSMC would pass on the costs to these companies, National Development Council Minister Paul Liu (劉鏡清) said at a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Economic Committee.
Trump is unlikely to impose the defense fee, as the resulting price increase could affect public opinion in the US, Liu said.
On the other hand, Trump’s proposal of a 60 percent tariff on Chinese companies and reduction of Chinese imports could benefit Taiwanese businesses by giving them the opportunity to replace Chinese companies, he added.
“Trump’s win would likely benefit Taiwan... Increased US sanctions on China would shield Taiwan from the negative effects of China’s internal economic issues,” he said.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) yesterday afternoon congratulated Trump on his victory in a Facebook post, saying that the KMT and the Republican Party have had friendly ties for longer than a century.
Both parties are committed to building an efficient government, competitive economy and stable international order, Chu said.
The KMT looks forward to a more robust Taiwan-US relationship under the “experienced leadership” of Trump and hopes for his continued promotion of peace and stability in the region, Chu said.
KMT Vice Chairman Andrew Hsia (夏立言) and International Affairs Department Director Alexander Huang (黃介正) are to visit Washington tomorrow to meet with US officials and members of key think tanks, he said.
They are to make connections with key players in the new administration and convey that the public majority in Taiwan favors the “status quo,” he added.
In an interview with CNEWS yesterday, Huang said Taiwan should be “extremely vigilant.”
Taiwanese often assume the US would come to Taiwan’s aid in the case of Chinese military action, but both US President Joe Biden and Trump have been hesitant to deploy troops during their terms, he said.
“Taiwan must be cautious during the transition period and establish relationships with incoming team members, especially those that would handle China policy,” he said.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) addressed Taiwan’s response to potential policy shifts under the Trump administration during a session of the Legislative Yuan yesterday.
“Taiwan has plans in case of any policy changes, and I have confidence in the stability of Taiwan-US relations,” he said.
Although Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with the CHIPS and Science Act, Taiwan has evaluated the potential impacts and prepared countermeasures, reducing the likelihood of significant disruption, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said.
Additional reporting by Fang Wei-li
A tropical depression east of the Philippines became a tropical storm early yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, less than a week after a typhoon barreled across the nation. The agency issued an advisory at 3:30am stating that the 22nd tropical storm, named Yinxing, of the Pacific typhoon season formed at 2am. As of 8am, the storm was 1,730km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, with a 100km radius. It was moving west-northwest at 32kph, with maximum sustained winds of 83kph and gusts of up to 108kph. Based on its current path, the storm is not expected to hit Taiwan, CWA
Commuters in Taipei picked their way through debris and navigated disrupted transit schedules this morning on their way to work and school, as the city was still working to clear the streets in the aftermath of Typhoon Kong-rey. By 11pm yesterday, there were estimated 2,000 trees down in the city, as well as 390 reports of infrastructure damage, 318 reports of building damage and 307 reports of fallen signs, the Taipei Public Works Department said. Workers were mobilized late last night to clear the debris as soon as possible, the department said. However, as of this morning, many people were leaving messages
A Canadian dental assistant was recently indicted by prosecutors after she was caught in August trying to smuggle 32kg of marijuana into Taiwan, the Aviation Police Bureau said on Wednesday. The 30-year-old was arrested on Aug. 4 after arriving on a flight to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Chang Tsung-lung (張驄瀧), a squad chief in the Aviation Police Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Division, told reporters. Customs officials noticed irregularities when the woman’s two suitcases passed through X-ray baggage scanners, Chang said. Upon searching them, officers discovered 32.61kg of marijuana, which local media outlets estimated to have a market value of more than NT$50 million (US$1.56
FATALITIES: The storm claimed at least two lives — a female passenger in a truck that was struck by a falling tree and a man who was hit by a utility pole Workers cleared fallen trees and shop owners swept up debris yesterday after one of the biggest typhoons to hit the nation in decades claimed at least two lives. Typhoon Kong-rey was packing winds of 184kph when it slammed into eastern Taiwan on Thursday, uprooting trees, triggering floods and landslides, and knocking out power as it swept across the nation. A 56-year-old female foreign national died from her injuries after the small truck she was in was struck by a falling tree on Provincial Highway 14A early on Thursday. The second death was reported at 8pm in Taipei on Thursday after a 48-year-old man
RSS