Taiwan is not freeloading off the US for its defense against China and that it is taking collaborative steps to bolster its security, Representative to the US Alexander Yui (俞大㵢) said yesterday.
“We’re not freeloaders, free-riders — we’re not just expecting to be saved,” Yui said in an interview yesterday in Washington.
Photo: AP
“Peace through strength is something we embrace,” he added, citing one of US President Donald Trump’s favorite foreign policy taglines.
Yui said Taiwan is in constant discussions with US officials about which US-made weapons it can buy that are best-suited to “asymmetric” warfare against a bigger foe.
Taiwanese officials are also speaking with Silicon Valley defense tech startups, he said.
At the same time, the government in Taipei is “revamping” its military reserves and civil defense preparations, while ensuring its energy grid and food supply can survive any Chinese effort to isolate it, he said.
The comments come as Trump is spurring doubts over US global commitments since returning to the White House.
He is cutting foreign assistance, pushing allies to spend more on their own security and pressuring Ukraine to make concessions to Russia, which invaded it three years ago.
Taiwan is seeking to stay on the right side of Trump, who has questioned the logic of the US' commitment to the security of Taiwan.
The US president has accused Taiwan of taking away the US semiconductor industry.
Bloomberg Economics estimated last year that a war over Taiwan would cost the global economy about US$10 trillion, with the loss of semiconductor manufacturing cascading through global supply chains and markets.
The US president said on the campaign trail that Taiwan should pay the US for its defense, and recently said Taipei should increase its military spending to 10 percent of GDP.
President William Lai (賴清德) last month ruled out such a steep increase, which would put its relative spending far above that of the US and other NATO members, proposing instead a more modest rise to about 3 percent of GDP from about 2.45 percent.
“We’re doing what we can,” Yui said.
He also pitched Taiwan as an “indispensable partner” for Trump’s efforts to revive US manufacturing, with Taiwanese tech firms boosting investment amid threats of tariffs.
Chipmaking behemoth Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co this month unveiled a new US$100 billion investment in the US — announced at the White House by chief executive officer C.C. Wei (魏哲家) alongside Trump — a deal so big that it spurred criticism the firm was abandoning its home.
The company rejected the allegation, which is particularly sensitive in Taiwan given the “Silicon Shield” theory that Taiwan’s dominant position in the global semiconductor supply chain deters Chinese aggression.
Asked whether Trump’s tariff threats have spurred Taiwan’s investments, Yui acknowledged Washington’s “carrot-and-stick” approach.
He said legislation addressing the double-taxation of Taiwanese firms in the US, which has overwhelmingly passed the House of Representatives, would act as a big incentive for pouring further funds into the US.
Yui said he was “confident” it would clear the Senate and hoped it would be signed into law this year.
“I would rather have the carrot than the stick,” he said.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
RSS