Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and economics ministry say that there’s likely to be little change in ties with the United States, following the election of former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris. Ministry officials gave their assessment in a report at the legislature on Monday.
Deputy Foreign Minister Harry Ho-jen Tseng spoke to the media before the report on Monday. He said that Taiwan’s representative to the United States, Hsiao Bi-khim had spoken with President-elect Biden’s foreign policy adviser, Antony Blinken. Blinken previously served as Former Deputy National Security Advisor under President Obama.
Tseng said that Hsiao’s discussion with Blinken touched on many topics of mutual interest and was very positive. He said that the two had been friends for a long time.
Tseng said that by looking at Biden’s past speeches and policies, it’s possible to get an idea of how Taiwan-US economic and trade relations will develop. He said the Biden administration is expected to go by the book, and that the US-China confrontation is likely to continue.
Tseng said that US-Taiwan trade ties are stable, and the United States’ strategy toward Taiwan is unlikely to change. He said that Taiwan will continue to take advantage of its strategic position in the global supply chain and work to boost cooperation and exchanges with the US in order to expand Taiwan’s trade sphere.
Meanwhile, as to whether Taiwan will reverse its decision to allow the import of US pork containing ractopamine, Tseng said that Taiwan’s government is characterized by good governance. He said a change in the US administration will not affect policy announcements.