The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) yesterday said that chips from Taiwanese semiconductor companies were not making their way into Chinese missiles “to the best of our knowledge.”
A report in yesterday’s Washington Post alleged that a Chinese company named Phytium Technology Co (飛騰) used chips made by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), along with US software, in advanced Chinese military systems.
“TSMC has long placed strict controls on their chips. The export of high-tech products from Taiwan is also highly regulated,” Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua (王美花) said.
Photo: Zha Chunming / Xinhua via AP
“According to our understanding, none of the end uses for those products was military,” she added.
“To the best of our knowledge, TSMC’s exports not only meet Taiwanese standards, they also comply with applicable US regulations,” Wang said. “If information emerges that shows differently, we will of course investigate.”
Given the high volume of chip exports from Taiwan, the Bureau of Foreign Trade would educate exporters more to ensure that Taiwanese and international regulations are being followed, Wang said.
“TSMC has a rigorous export control system in place, including a robust assessment and review process on shipments to specific entities that are subject to export control restrictions,” the chipmaker said in an e-mailed response to the report.
“Moreover, TSMC has put in place processes to help identify abnormal circumstances in a transaction with due-diligence follow-up. With these processes already in place, we are not aware of a product manufactured by TSMC that was destined for military end-use, as alleged in the coverage,” it said.
The Washington Post article cites Ou Si-fu (歐錫富), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research (國防安全研究院), as well as an anonymous analyst.
Ou told the Taipei Times by telephone that he cannot speak specifically in regards to Phytium, but that the use of Taiwanese chips in Chinese military equipment would be “hard to trace.”
“The problem is that the chips are dual-use technology. They can be bought off the shelf for one application and then used in military equipment that is aimed right back at Taiwan,” Ou said.
Current Taiwanese and US safeguards for preventing Taiwanese chips from ending up in Chinese munitions are inadequate, Ou said, adding that meaningful measures for tightening up the flow of chips to China must come from the US.
“The US is ultimately in control of the upstream technology and equipment for the chips, even though Taiwan is the manufacturer,” Ou said. “They must be the ones to crack down.”
When asked whether Taiwanese can simply choose not to sell advanced chips to China, Ou said that it was unlikely.
“It would be asking them to voluntarily make less money and offend the Chinese at the same time,” Ou said.
MAKING WAVES: China’s maritime militia could become a nontraditional threat in war, clogging up shipping lanes to prevent US or Japanese intervention, a report said About 1,900 Chinese ships flying flags of convenience and fishing vessels that participated in China’s military exercises around Taiwan last month and in January last year have been listed for monitoring, Coast Guard Administration (CGA) Deputy Director-General Hsieh Ching-chin (謝慶欽) said yesterday. Following amendments to the Commercial Port Act (商港法) and the Law of Ships (船舶法) last month, the CGA can designate possible berthing areas or deny ports of call for vessels suspected of loitering around areas where undersea cables can be accessed, Oceans Affairs Council Minister Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said. The list of suspected ships, originally 300, had risen to about
DAREDEVIL: Honnold said it had always been a dream of his to climb Taipei 101, while a Netflix producer said the skyscraper was ‘a real icon of this country’ US climber Alex Honnold yesterday took on Taiwan’s tallest building, becoming the first person to scale Taipei 101 without a rope, harness or safety net. Hundreds of spectators gathered at the base of the 101-story skyscraper to watch Honnold, 40, embark on his daredevil feat, which was also broadcast live on Netflix. Dressed in a red T-shirt and yellow custom-made climbing shoes, Honnold swiftly moved up the southeast face of the glass and steel building. At one point, he stepped onto a platform midway up to wave down at fans and onlookers who were taking photos. People watching from inside
Japan’s strategic alliance with the US would collapse if Tokyo were to turn away from a conflict in Taiwan, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said yesterday, but distanced herself from previous comments that suggested a possible military response in such an event. Takaichi expressed her latest views on a nationally broadcast TV program late on Monday, where an opposition party leader criticized her for igniting tensions with China with the earlier remarks. Ties between Japan and China have sunk to the worst level in years after Takaichi said in November that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could bring about a Japanese
STREAMLINED: The dedicated funding would allow the US to transfer equipment to Taiwan when needed and order upgraded replacements for stockpiles, a source said The US House of Representatives on Thursday passed a defense appropriations bill totaling US$838.7 billion, of which US$1 billion is to be allocated to reinforcing security cooperation with Taiwan and US$150 million to replace defense articles provided to the nation. These are part of the Consolidated Appropriation Act, which the US House yesterday passed with 341 votes in favor and 88 against. The act must be passed by the US Senate before Friday next week to avoid another government shutdown. The US House Committee on Appropriations on Monday unveiled the act, saying that it allocates US$1 billion for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative
RSS