US-Taiwan relations

Biden Comments Suggest Disapproval of Pelosi Visit to Taiwan

Brian Hioe
A scoop by the Financial Times on Tuesday reported that US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi planned to visit Taiwan next month. However, US president Joe Biden surprised today with apparent off-the-cuff comments suggesting that his administration viewed the Pelosi visit as a bad idea. When asked about the prospect of a Pelosi visit, Biden stated, “Well, I think that the military thinks it’s not a good idea right now. But I don’t know what the status of it is”...
EnglishInternationalJuly 2022Regional Tensions8 min read

Will Eric Chu Travel to the US?

Brian Hioe
It continues to be up in the air as to whether KMT chair Eric Chu will make a trip to the US. The KMT’s Department of International Affairs announced that Chu was planning to visit the US after the Lunar New Holiday in December. More recent announcements, however, have suggested that the trip is delayed...
EnglishFebruary 2022Politics5 min read

Deal for Taiwan to Pay for Guatemalan Lobbying Efforts May Indicate International Perceptions

Brian Hioe
As reported on by international media, it has emerged from US foreign lobbying records that Taiwan is paying for Guatemala to lobby the US government, to the tune of 900,000 USD. In particular, what raises eyebrows is that this is taking place through the lobbying firm Ballard Partners, which was close to the Trump administration. Notably, Guatemala is one of Taiwan’s fourteen remaining diplomatic allies...
EnglishFebruary 2022Politics5 min read

Code Pink Webinar With Carl Zha on Taiwanese Skips Most of the Last Century, Has No Taiwanese Speakers

Brian Hioe
Anti-war organizations Code Pink and Massachusetts Peace Action held a webinar on the possibility of war in the Taiwan Straits late last month, featuring Chinese podcaster Carl Zha and Madison Tang from Code Pink. The event proved a striking example of the sort of discussion of Taiwan one gets from elements of the anti-war left when they speak over Taiwanese voices, with neither Zha nor Tang being Taiwanese. Zha was the main speaker, with Tang moderating...
December 2021EnglishPolitics10 min read

Was Audrey Tang’s Video Feed Cut at the Biden Administration’s Summit for Democracy?

Brian Hioe
Reports have stated that Digital Minister Audrey Tang’s video seemed to be cut during the Biden administration’s Summit for Democracy last week. If the video was cut, it is believed that this took place due to a map that appeared during Tang’s presentation which displayed Taiwan in a different color than China, with concerns that this would be perceived as support for Taiwanese independence...
America and the Asia PacificDecember 2021EnglishInternational8 min read

Visit Last Week by Mostly Democratic Party Delegation Takes Place in Low-Key Manner

Brian Hioe
A US diplomatic visit took place on Thursday and Friday last week, involving a delegation of five members of the House of Representatives. The five members of the delegation were Mark Takano (D-CA), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Colin Allred (D-TX), Sara Jacobs (D-CA), and Nancy Mace (R-SC), who met with Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen and other high-ranking government officials....
America and the Asia PacificDecember 2021EnglishInternational6 min read

Xi and Biden Meet in Virtual Summit Over Taiwan, Other Issues

Brian Hioe
US president Joe Biden met with Chinese president Xi Jinping today in a virtual meeting. This was one of the most high-profile meetings between the leaders of the world’s two superpowers since Biden took office, with Xi having not left China in around two years. As a result, Xi was not in attendance at the COP26 summit on global carbon emissions, something that was criticized by Biden. The meeting took place on what was Tuesday morning in China and Monday evening in the US...
EnglishInternationalNovember 2021Regional Tensions7 min read