If Taiwan needs a sign that the relationship with the US is “at a high water mark,” it only needs to look at the schedule of newly appointed American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Sandra Oudkirk for the past four months.
After assuming the post at the end of July, Oudkirk met with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Aug. 10, when Oudkirk said that “the Taiwan-US relationship is at a high water mark.”
Since then, Oudkirk has kept a packed agenda. From appearing at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport when Moderna COVID-19 vaccines donated by the US arrived, to traveling to Chiayi County to witness the upgrading of F-16 combat squadrons, to accompanying US congressional delegations to meetings with Tsai and visiting Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) facilities, there is no question that Oudkirk has been demonstrating the high water mark occasion with tangible actions.
The Global Cooperation and Training Framework (GCTF) is another example.
To resolve the predicaments Taiwan faces in joining international organizations, the US founded the GCTF in 2015, a tailor-made platform to utilize Taiwan’s strengths and expertise to address global issues of mutual concern with the international community, focusing on public health, crime, digital economics, cybersecurity and other fields.
Since assuming her position, Oudkirk has hosted six consecutive workshops with one to two events per month. The topics have included green energy and sustainability, labor rights protection, crisis management and disaster response, women in government, protecting the rights of people with disabilities and countering fake news.
All of these issues are within Taiwan’s areas of expertise, and by standing shoulder to shoulder with the US, the nation can bring to life its slogan of “Taiwan can help” and contribute in a variety of ways to the international community.
Japan became the GCTF’s third partner in 2019, and has since joined Taiwan and the US in cohosting all of its workshops.
Australia also joined the framework in October.
The GCTF alliance can assist Taiwan in becoming central to those countries’ strategies in the Indo-Pacific region.
Additional like-minded countries such as Canada, the UK, Sweden, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Israel and some countries in the EU have joined the GCTF to cohost workshops on a wide range of topics.
Taiwan might be seeing a spillover effect from the GCTF, with a growing number of participating countries and increasing diversity in the topics it covers.
Since the administration of US President Joe Biden took office in January, US Navy vessels have sailed through the Taiwan Strait 11 times, conducting regular freedom of navigation patrols every month. Tsai has also confirmed the presence of US troops in the nation to help train the Taiwanese military.
Meanwhile, a TSMC 5-nanometer wafer plant under construction in Phoenix, Arizona, is to be the US’ largest direct foreign investment in the country’s history.
With defense and supply chain cooperation in place, there is no doubt that the relationship between Taiwan and the US is at a high water mark.
As visits from US government officials and congressional delegations are expected to increase, Oudkirk’s schedule is likely to become busier than ever.
Chen Yung-chang is a company manager.
Translated by Rita Wang
There is a modern roadway stretching from central Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland in the Horn of Africa, to the partially recognized state’s Egal International Airport. Emblazoned on a gold plaque marking the road’s inauguration in July last year, just below the flags of Somaliland and the Republic of China (ROC), is the road’s official name: “Taiwan Avenue.” The first phase of construction of the upgraded road, with new sidewalks and a modern drainage system to reduce flooding, was 70 percent funded by Taipei, which contributed US$1.85 million. That is a relatively modest sum for the effect on international perception, and
At the end of last year, a diplomatic development with consequences reaching well beyond the regional level emerged. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared Israel’s recognition of Somaliland as a sovereign state, paving the way for political, economic and strategic cooperation with the African nation. The diplomatic breakthrough yields, above all, substantial and tangible benefits for the two countries, enhancing Somaliland’s international posture, with a state prepared to champion its bid for broader legitimacy. With Israel’s support, Somaliland might also benefit from the expertise of Israeli companies in fields such as mineral exploration and water management, as underscored by Israeli Minister of
When former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) first took office in 2016, she set ambitious goals for remaking the energy mix in Taiwan. At the core of this effort was a significant expansion of the percentage of renewable energy generated to keep pace with growing domestic and global demands to reduce emissions. This effort met with broad bipartisan support as all three major parties placed expanding renewable energy at the center of their energy platforms. However, over the past several years partisanship has become a major headwind in realizing a set of energy goals that all three parties profess to want. Tsai
Chile has elected a new government that has the opportunity to take a fresh look at some key aspects of foreign economic policy, mainly a greater focus on Asia, including Taiwan. Still, in the great scheme of things, Chile is a small nation in Latin America, compared with giants such as Brazil and Mexico, or other major markets such as Colombia and Argentina. So why should Taiwan pay much attention to the new administration? Because the victory of Chilean president-elect Jose Antonio Kast, a right-of-center politician, can be seen as confirming that the continent is undergoing one of its periodic political shifts,
RSS