The Biden administration’s announcement that it would resume trade and investment negotiations with Taiwan after a five-year hiatus is a more significant development than some may realize. Since the mid-1990s, the “TIFA talks,” typically held each year, have proven to be a useful vehicle for ironing out policy differences between the two sides and setting the stage…
China’s recent ban on pineapple imports from Taiwan provides an occasion for policymakers to rethink the island’s dependence on the Chinese market for agricultural exports. In late February, just as Taiwan’s pineapple season was set to begin, China’s General Administration of Customs announced that it would suspend the import of Taiwanese pineapples beginning March 1….
Reflections on my over 50 years in Taiwan, including nearly two decades of service at AmCham. It was 1969, the year of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing and the Woodstock Music Festival. Richard Nixon was in his first year as President of the United States, and “Watergate” referred merely to the office/apartment complex in downtown…
Taiwan’s status as a just and equitable country has been burnished by its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the reasons Taiwan has done so well in halting the spread of COVID-19 is the nation’s relative wealth equality. Experts say this factor contributed to the establishment of a universal healthcare system and has led…
Few people are more qualified to comment on the respective responses to COVID-19 by the U.S. and Taiwan than Tsung-mei Cheng. A native of Taiwan, she has lived in the U.S. for many years and is currently a health policy research analyst at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Her late…
Once Taiwan’s second city and a major industrial hub, Kaohsiung has seen better days. Now it hopes to make a comeback by increasing investment in innovative and eco-friendly industries and boosting tourism. Nothing better symbolizes Kaohsiung’s economic ups and downs than its harbor. Thirty years ago, the southern city ranked among the world’s top-three busiest…
In Taiwan, the emergence of smaller parties has been part of the island’s democratic development. The unexpected victory of political newcomer Chen Po-wei for a seat in the Legislative Yuan in this January’s elections has drawn fresh attention to the position of minor parties in Taiwan’s political arena. Chen ran on the ticket of the…
Left with just 15 diplomatic allies, Taiwan now looks to safeguard its most vital remaining relationships while strengthening unofficial ties with key democracies. Since the election of President Tsai Ing-wen in 2016, China has stepped up efforts to curtail Taiwan’s international space. Luring away Taiwan’s diplomatic allies has been integral to this campaign. In September,…
The biggest concern for Taiwan is that the body’s dispute-resolution mechanism may be weakened or unable to function. U.S. President Donald Trump has made no secret of his disdain for the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the way it regulates trade among its 164 members. Trump has even threatened to withdraw the United States from…
Attitudes and facilities have improved, but much more still needs to be done. Taiwan is a crowded place. The population per square kilometer is nearly 20 times that of the United States, and the cities are crammed with parked vehicles and snack vendors. Although accessibility for wheelchair users has improved in recent years, for the…
