Indiana's Republican governor is on a four-day visit to Taiwan, which will focus on economic exchange, particularly semiconductors, a statement from his office said. Governor Eric Holcomb arrived in the island nation on Sunday, days after two high-profile visits by US politicians drew China's ire.
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen told the governor that Taiwan and the US are key security and economic allies in the Indo-Pacific region and democratic allies must stand together. Tsai made the comments in a meeting with Governor Eric Holcomb at her office in Taipei.
I welcome the start of talks under the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade, a major step forward for #Taiwan & for our trade ties with the #US & the world. Thanks to all who made this possible & continue to promote joint economic cooperation based on our shared values. pic.twitter.com/MvKOUpAI7N
— 蔡英文 Tsai Ing-wen (@iingwen) August 18, 2022
Holcomb will also meet representatives of the semiconductor industry. This comes as Taiwan's autonomy has become a vital geopolitical interest for the US because of the island's dominance of the semiconductor manufacturing market.
"The trip to Taiwan comes on the heels of two recent semiconductor industry announcements in Indiana including Taiwan-based MediaTek, as well as the recent signing of the federal CHIPS Act, placing a focus on strengthening Indiana’s technology microelectronics ecosystem," the statement said.
"The delegation will focus on strengthening Indiana’s economic and academic partnerships and reinforcing the state’s commitment to innovation, as well as committing to working together to build the economy of the future on an international scale," it said.
The governor is also expected to promote academic and tech cooperation between Taiwan and the state of Indiana.
"Gov. Holcomb will be the first US governor to visit Taiwan since 2019 and is the first Indiana governor to go to Taiwan in 17 years," the statement read. There was no immediate response from China to his arrival.
Holcomb's visit came amid tensions between Taiwan, China and the US. Earlier in August, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visited Taiwan, infuriating China which launched military drill around Taiwan soon after she left the nation. This was followed by the visit of five US lawmakers, led by Senator Ed Markey -- the second high-level group to visit following that of Pelosi.
China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its own territory and views exchanges with foreign governments as an infringement on its claims. It says Taiwan is the most important and sensitive issue in its relations with Washington, and that it considers it an internal issue.
However, Taiwan's government said that as the People's Republic of China has never ruled the island, it has no right to claim it, and that only Taiwan's 23 million people can decide their future.
In response to Pelosi's visit, China's military held several days of military exercises that included warplanes flying toward the island and warships sailing across the midline of the Taiwan Strait.
Moreover, China imposed visa bans and other sanctions on several Taiwanese political figures, though its unclear what effect the sanctions would have. China's foreign ministry also announced sanctions against Nancy Pelosi after her visit to Taiwan.
(With inputs from Reuters)
(Edited by : Akriti Anand)
First Published: Aug 22, 2022 1:56 PM IST
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