Trump won't abandon Taiwan due to semiconductor prowess: Taiwan Deputy FM

Following Donald Trump's victory in the United States presidential election, Taiwan's Deputy Foreign Minister Francois Wu said that Washington under Trump's leadership will not abandon Taiwan due to its semiconductor prowess, as reported by Taiwan News.

While addressing the Globe and Mail interview, Wu said, "Trump wants to make America great again. I think without Taiwan, he cannot make America great again. He needs the semiconductors made here," Wu said. He pointed out that Taiwan produces more than 60 per cent of the world's semiconductor chips and more than 90 per cent of the most advanced chips."

In response to Trump's previous remarks about forcing Taiwan to pay more for US military assistance, Wu said Taipei has nearly doubled its defence budget in the past eight years. There is also a backlog of US weapons Taiwan previously ordered that has yet to be delivered, the deputy foreign minister said.

 

According to Taiwan News, Taiwan would be open to buying more advanced weapons such as the F-35 fighter jet if the US made it available, Wu said. He believes the US under Trump would still act to protect its interests in case a conflict broke out in the Taiwan Strait.

Wu said Taiwan's strategy can be described as a "not today" policy. This approach keeps Chinese leader Xi Jinping thinking, "every day when he wakes up that today is not the day to invade Taiwan."

Meanwhile, China has increased its provocative incursions around Taiwan by 300 per cent since May, US Commander of Pacific Air Forces General Kevin Schneider said, adding that issues in the region may put to test the administration of US President-elect Donald Trump, as reported by Taipei Times.

The General also said that China's tactics are just not reserved to China, but they show to the world that China achieves their goals, Taipei Times reported.

"Whether it's coming into the air defence identification zone [ADIZ] or crossing the centre line within the Taiwan Strait, since the inauguration [of president William Lai], we have seen a 300 per cent increase in those air activities," Schneider told NBC News, Taipei Times quoted.

From May to November last year, Chinese aircraft intruded into Taiwan's ADIZ 335 times, Ministry of National Defence data showed. At the same time this year, China entered the airspace at least 1,085 times, as per Taipei Times.