Taiwan has signed science and technology cooperation agreements with 43 nations and three intergovernmental organizations, a National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) official said on Saturday.
Increasing global awareness of Taiwan’s key role in semiconductor manufacturing has opened doors for the council’s technology diplomacy, enabling the nation to ink state-to-state cooperative agreements, said Tom Yeh (葉至誠), director-general of the council’s Department of International Cooperation and Science Education.
While the council succeeded in signing memorandums of understanding with private entities, foreign capital had been wary of official collaboration for fear of angering Beijing, he said.
Photo courtesy of the National Science and Technology Council
Recent events, including a global chip shortage that gripped the auto industry, have led to a greater appreciation of Taiwan’s importance in the global semiconductor supply chain, he said, adding that a vast majority of countries seeking partnership with the nation wanted chips.
Most countries now understand that they must be as self-sufficient in technology as possible and avoid dependency on competitors or potential adversaries — factors that have bolstered Taiwan’s appeal as a trustworthy partner, Yeh said.
Taking advantage of the situation, Taiwan insisted on using only government-to-government documentation as a condition for cooperation — an approach that has largely succeeded due to the urgent need to secure chip supplies, he said.
Citing an example, Yeh said that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz recently stated that Germany simultaneously recognizes the “one China” policy while maintaining its sovereign right to freely choose diplomatic and technology partners for itself.
The council has signed 134 agreements with foreign states and organizations to date, he said.
Taiwan’s involvement in global science and technology programs includes research projects on semiconductors, lithium batteries, hydrogen energy, low-orbit satellites, auto chips and biomedicine, he said.
They also include its participation last year in the Horizon Europe Strategic Plan, APEC Ministerial Meeting on natural disaster prevention and response, and the inaugural Taiwan-US Science and Technology Cooperation Dialogue, Yeh said.
In addition, the National Research Council Canada sent a delegation to Taiwan to mark the 25th anniversary of bilateral scientific exchanges, and discuss earthquake engineering, artificial intelligence and other fields, he said.
Taiwan is a partner to Latvia and Lithuania’s research program on biomedicine and laser technology, the Philippines’ research program on earthquakes and volcanoes, and Australia and Germany’s hydrogen fuel production, transportation and storage research, he said.
The nation’s technology strategy is to leverage its advantages in semiconductors and information technology to support advances in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, aviation and space, precision medicine, sustainable energy and sixth-generation Internet, Yeh said.
The US-China trade and technology war, Europe’s increasing mistrust of Beijing over its support of Russian aggression against Ukraine and the need to de-risk have led major European economic players to look to the Indo-Pacific region for their economic future.
These developments are an opportunity for Taiwan to amplify the advantages it can offer to Central and Eastern European nations as a prosperous and democratic economic partner, academics have said.
As part of its efforts to push science and technology diplomacy, the council also provides subsidies for international research exchanges.
Council statistics showed that the number of foreign researchers recruited to Taiwan over the past 10 years increased from 434 people in 2014 to 768 last year, with total subsidies last year reaching about NT$700 million (US$22.19 million).
The council has also launched programs to subsidize Taiwanese researchers’ studies abroad, such as the Overseas Project for Post Graduate Research program (千里馬計畫), the Partnership Program for Connection to the Top Labs in the World — Dragon Gate Program (龍門計畫) and the Subsidy for Short-Term Research Abroad for Technologists (補助科學與技術人員國外短期研究).
Last year, 318 Taiwanese researchers received about NT$300 million in subsidies through the programs.
“People” are the key to scientific research and development, Yeh said.
About three decades ago, Taiwan was a technology importer, with many Taiwanese leaving for studies in the US and returning to Taiwan to contribute to society what they have learned, he said.
Today Taiwan has become a technology exporter, he said.
However, he also expressed concern that with many young people choosing to study at local universities and given the high demand for talent in the local tech industry, these young people might “lack an international perspective.”
As such, the council still encourages them to explore abroad, while also inviting foreign experts to Taiwan for further exchanges, he said.
To expand the international experience of Taiwanese doctoral students, the council is offering subsidies for an additional 200 people who wish to study in Central and East Europe in select fields, Yeh said.
To stabilize domestic research capacity, the approval number and salaries for postdoctoral research fellows have been raised by 10 percent to 2,400 people, he said.
Yeh added that while Taiwan faces is facing a low birthrate problem, Southeast Asian countries enjoy a demographic dividend and many doctoral students and post-doctoral researchers are coming to Taiwan, with which they share a closer Asian cultural connection.
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
A Japan Self-Defense Forces vessel entered the Taiwan Strait yesterday, Japanese media reported. After passing through the Taiwan Strait, the Ikazuchi was to proceed to the South China Sea to take part in a joint military exercise with the US and the Philippines, the reports said. Japan Self-Defense Force vessels were first reported to have passed through the strait in September, 2024, with two further transits taking place in February and June last year, the Asahi Shimbun reported. Yesterday’s transit also marked the first time since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office that a Japanese warship has been sent through the Taiwan
‘SAME OLD TRICK’: Even if Beijing resumes individual travel to Taiwan, it would only benefit Chinese tourism companies, the Economic Democracy Union convener said China’s 10 new “incentives” are “sugar-coated poison,” an official said yesterday, adding that Taiwanese businesses see them clearly for what they are, but that Beijing would inevitably find some local collaborators to try to drums up support. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made the remark ahead of a news conference the General Chamber of Commerce is to hold today. The event, titled “Industry Perspectives on China’s Recent Pro-Taiwan Policies,” is expected to include representatives from industry associations — such as those in travel, hotels, food and agriculture — to request the government cooperate with China’s new measures, people familiar with
RSS