The majority of Taiwanese think the nation’s semiconductor industry is a “silicon shield” and that the administration of US President Donald Trump would pressure Taiwan with tariffs, according to a public opinion poll released today by the Foundation for the People.
The poll covered international topics including US-Taiwan relations and Trump administration tariffs.
Regarding tariffs, 85.6 percent of respondents said the Trump administration would likely pressure Taiwan with tariffs in the future, with 52.8 percent believing it is very likely and 10.7 percent saying it is unlikely or impossible.
Photo: Lo Pei-de, Taipei Times
Regarding Taiwan-US trade, 40.6 percent believe trade between Taiwan and the US is fair and reciprocal, while 49 percent said it is not.
Regarding Taiwan-US trade negotiations, 62.4 percent believe the US holds the upper hand, while only 24.8 percent think Taiwan has an advantage.
As for ways to reduce Taiwan's trade surplus with the US, 59.5 percent suggested prioritizing military and weapons purchases, 41.6 percent favor petrochemical energy and nuclear power, 35.4 percent support agricultural product imports, 12.5 percent suggest automobiles and 11.5 percent propose computers and related components.
As for whether Taiwan's semiconductor industry serves as a “silicon shield” that would prompt military intervention from the US and other Western countries if China were to attack, 62.5 percent agreed and 30.8 percent disagreed.
Regarding Trump’s claim that “Taiwan stole US semiconductor business,” 88.4 percent of respondents disagreed, while only 9.5 percent agreed.
Additionally, if Trump were to demand that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) transfer its most advanced 2nm manufacturing technology to the US, 84.8 percent of the public would oppose the transfer, while only 10.9 percent would support it.
Regarding US-Taiwan relations over the next year, 13.4 percent said they would improve, 37.4 percent said they would remain about the same and 40 percent said they would get worse.
Trump would continue to use tariffs as weapons and focus on negotiations for various deals, Deputy Legislative Speaker and foundation chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) told a news conference this morning.
Taiwan cannot solely rely on TSMC and the semiconductor industry, and should formulate negotiation strategies and goals as soon as possible, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) member said.
The online poll surveyed nationals aged 20 and above around the country, gathering 1,042 responses from Tuesday to Friday last week.
It was distributed via Facebook and data were adjusted to ensure the sample aligns with the national population structure.
At a 95 percent confidence level, the margin of error was 3.03 percentage points.
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