Poet Rainer Maria Rilke once wrote: Dove that ventured outside… knows what serenity is, for she has felt her wings pass through all distance and fear in the course of her wanderings… The ball that we dared, that we hurled into infinite space, doesn’t it fill our hands differently with its return: heavier by the…
The U.S. Congress in December passed legislation creating the long-awaited Taiwan Fellowship Program to deepen the relationship between the U.S. and Taiwan. Since the idea was first proposed more than a decade ago, AmCham Taiwan has been an enthusiastic supporter of the Program, which will enable the United States each year to send 10 federal…
Soon after this issue is in your hands, I’ll be landing in Washington, D.C., and returning a “window on Japan” to my life. By March I will have taken over stewardship of the National Association of Japan-America Societies (NAJAS), a developer of thought and exchange programs for 38 grassroots societies across North America that promote…
The President’s View appropriate to our annual Wine & Dine feature would be tasting notes on Taiwanese fruit beers. But I cannot resist a sobering look back at the last year for AmCham, paired with mention of two developments that I hope for during the coming Rabbit Year. The China House: As we approached…
The U.S. Congress showered attention on Taiwan in mid-September. Headlining was the Senate Committee’s vote to jack-up military assistance under the Taiwan Policy Act. A week later, AmCham loyalists followed Senior Advisor Don Shapiro’s speech at a Taiwan Congressional Caucus-supported launch in Washington of the Taiwan Matters for America / America Matters for Taiwan booklet,…
Two months after U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the island, Taiwan continues to be a pertinent subject in Washington, DC. Following numerous Taiwan visits by politicians and legislators, the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee advanced the Taiwan Policy Act of 2022 by a 17-5 vote on September 14. The bill has…
The United States and Taiwan on August 17 announced that talks under the U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century Trade would begin this fall. The 11 trade areas that will be addressed in the negotiations include trade facilitation, good regulatory practices, anti-corruption, small-and-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), agriculture, standards, labor, environment, state-owned enterprises, nonmarket policies and practices, and…
If there were ever a time and place to reverse the saying “keep your friends close and your enemies closer,” it would be Taiwan, August 2022. As pressure mounts from across the Strait, let’s invite back some four million visitors – sellers, buyers, investors, investment suitors, free-spending tourists, caregivers, activists, and students – between now…
After two years of COVID clamp-down, pandemic control relaxations mean that Taiwan’s limbs are gradually regaining circulation. A summary of programs and people impacting AmCham Taiwan over the summer is by now in order. June saw the rollout of the so-called 3+4 home isolation plan as a gesture of re-engagement, supplemented by July’s elimination of…
AmCham Taiwan extends its heartfelt condolences to the people of Japan following the death of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated in Nara last month. Abe was a longtime friend and fervent supporter of Taiwan and spared no effort in advancing Japan’s relations with Taiwan, both during his time in power and after…
