The prevalence of uncertainty about managing a strong balance of power in favor of the post-Cold War liberal regional order has propelled several countries to reinvent their efforts to improve ties with others to protect their national interests, and contribute to securing a free and open Indo-Pacific.
This is equally true about at least two countries — Taiwan and India. More to the point, Taipei and New Delhi under the leadership of President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have succeeded in bringing bilateral ties to the forefront of the two sides’ foreign policy agenda.
In this context, the laying of foundation stones for the establishment of a semiconductor plant in Dholera, Gujarat state, through a collaboration between India’s Tata Group and Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp, coupled with a migration and mobility agreement, is hugely significant for the bilateral ties.
Undoubtedly, both countries have an interest in realizing cooperation in semiconductor manufacturing, as well as science and technology.
For India, the complete breakdown of the global supply chain due to the COVID-19 pandemic forced it to make necessary policy corrections to become self-reliant in critical areas.
The sustained and secured supply of semiconductors has therefore emerged as a major priority for India, as it imports 95 percent of its semiconductors from China, South Korea, Singapore and other countries. At the same time, the Indian semiconductor industry’s output is projected to be US$80 billion by 2028.
To realize its ambition to emerge as a global superpower and challenge China in the semiconductor industry, India needs to become a major global manufacturer of semiconductors. In this context, India has announced a US$15.2 billion investment in the sector, but as India alone would not be able to realize its ambition of emerging as a major global player, Taiwan, with its dominance of the global semiconductor industry, has a major role to play. India is also interested in fostering ties with Taiwan in semiconductor manufacturing because Indian technocrats would be trained by some of the best minds in the industry.
New Delhi’s willingness to work with Taiwan would not only reduce its dependency on Chinese semiconductors, but it would also send a clear message to China about India’s position on the Taiwan issue.
India is also aware that with its expertise in intermediate goods, including metal fasteners, fabrics and optical panels, Taiwan could help it build a self-sufficient manufacturing sector.
On the other hand, the semiconductor industry presents a big opportunity for Taiwan to expand its presence in India. This in turn would boost Taiwan’s stature as a major player in the global supply chain.
Taiwan is also interested in stepping into the Indian semiconductor industry because the Indian government has already announced it would cover 50 percent of the costs of setting up semiconductor fabs.
Cooperation on skilled labor between the two sides would also have a profound impact on cementing people-to-people interactions. The recently signed labor agreement would also help bring the people of India and Taiwan closer, along with its other intended objectives.
Apart from building ties in the semiconductor sphere, India and Taiwan should also focus on fostering cooperation in the field of science and technology.
Some initiatives have already been taken, for example, a memorandum of understanding has been signed to implement an India-Taiwan Program of Cooperation in Science and Technology.
Academics and government representatives from Taiwan and India also held an online meeting to promote a “smart pandemic prevention system” to further bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the advancement of the latest artificial intelligence technology.
However, the field of science and technology still awaits serious collaboration between the two countries.
The time has come for India and Taiwan to establish a science and technology dialogue in which government officials, academics and private companies discuss ways of promoting research cooperation in semiconductors, agriculture, biotechnology, cancer research, climate change and other areas.
India is already focused on the development of 6G telecom networks to enable a high-quality living experience and cooperation with Taipei on the technologies would be beneficial for New Delhi.
Taiwan is a major player in the global information communications technology industry and the world’s fifth O-RAN alliance-qualified Open Testing and Integration Center is located in Taoyuan.
The two sides should also explore the possibility of cooperation in rare earth processing technology.
While India, Taiwan and the US held a joint workshop convened under the Global Cooperation and Training Framework in December last year to deepen operational expertise and share best practices on cybersecurity issues, similar efforts should be taken to promote cooperation among the three countries in science and technology.
With the semiconductor industry having opened a new avenue for cooperation in science and technology, New Delhi should take steps to remove the obstructions that prevent Taiwanese firms from investing in India.
While Taiwan has expressed its desire to build a comprehensive partnership with India, New Delhi’s issue-based approach continues to prevent bilateral ties realizing their full potential.
With two sides sharing common interests on many fronts, including the threat posed by China, India needs to address its continued resistance and bolster its cooperation with Taiwan.
Sumit Kumar is an assistant professor at University of Delhi’s Department of Political Science and a former Ministry of Foreign Affairs visiting fellow at National Chengchi University.
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