Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia have established state representative offices in Taiwan. The foreign ministry and the American State Office Association held a reception Thursday to celebrate this event.
In his speech, foreign ministry official Douglas Yi-tien Hsu (徐佑典) said the addition of the three new states symbolizes the flourishing relationship between Taiwan and the United States.
The states joined the American State Office Association, which includes Florida, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, South Carolina and Wyoming. President of the association Yen Shu-fen (嚴樹芬) says at least nine other US states have expressed interest in establishing state offices in Taiwan. He says the next state may be Arizona, where TSMC has just opened a new plant.
AIT Commercial Director Clint Brewer noted that Taiwanese companies are now more eager to invest in the US. They are interested not only in wafers and chips, but also in electric vehicles, health care products, and even bubble tea.
The American State Office Association was established in 1983 to promote and strengthen bilateral relations between the U.S. and Taiwan. The association is a common platform for U.S. state representative offices in Taiwan to promote economic and trade relations and investment opportunities with Taiwan.