The European Parliament’s Committee on Industry, Research and Energy on Tuesday passed a proposed European Chips Act, with Taiwan listed as one of its target partners to achieve supply chain resiliency.
The global semiconductor shortage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has yet to end, with Swedish auto manufacturer Volvo AB last week saying it was shutting down operations at its plant in Ghent, Belgium, for a week due to a chip shortage.
Realizing the strategic importance of chip supply, many Western governments have proposed bills to achieve supply chain autonomy.
Photo: Bart van Overbeeke Fotografie / ASML / Reuters
The European Commission last year proposed the European Chips Act, whose goals include doubling the region’s global market share of semiconductors from 10 percent to at least 20 percent by 2030.
The draft bill was passed by the committee, with 67 votes in favor and only one against it.
The act aims to bolster technological capacity building, production and innovation, and build a mechanism to monitor the semiconductor supply chain and coordinate actions during a crisis.
Article 7 of the act says that building partnerships with chip-producing countries is important to strengthen Europe’s semiconductor ecosystem, and ensure security of supply and resilience, so the European Commission, with assistance from the European Semiconductor Board, should seek important partners.
Many legislators, including European Parliament Vice President Nicola Beer, who visited Taiwan last year, have proposed similar amendments to the act, and listed Taiwan as an important partner.
A diplomat who is familiar with the European Parliament told the Central News Agency that it is very rare for Taiwan to be mentioned in a proposed EU law.
The amended Article 7 of the act stipulates that the European Commission should seek like-minded strategic partners, such as global semiconductor leaders Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the US.
It encourages the EU to engage in semiconductor diplomacy to improve its resilience in facing challenges such as supply chain disruptions, and requires the bloc to establish a chip diplomacy mechanism, strike trade and investment agreements or seek other diplomatic measures with partners.
The proposed European Chips Act next goes through interparliamentary meetings when the European Parliament holds its plenary session in Strasbourg, France, from Feb. 13 to 16.
If unopposed, the proposal is to be passed on to the European Council for negotiations among member states’ representatives, and promulgated if a consensus is reached.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
RSS