Visit to Taiwan

It was a good time to pay my first visit to Taiwan, just a couple of weeks after their General Election.? I called on government officials and commentators and dropped in on the British Office Taipei.

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With current Vice President Lai winning an historic third term for the Democratic Progressive Party, DPP, people are expecting continuity. The election took place against a backdrop of disinformation campaigns and increased Chinese military activity around the Straits. But Taiwan’s electorate once again opted for a party that is associated with promoting Taiwan’s self-identity. All eyes will now be watching what Lai says when he takes office in May. Having won his election, he can probably afford to be relatively non-confrontational.?

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However, the DPP lost their majority in the parliament, with a third party, the Taiwan People’s Party, TPP, holding the balance of power between the DPP and Kuomintang, KMT. Many of the TPP’s voters are younger and more focussed on jobs and housing than on cross Straits issues. The hung parliament will be something of a constraint on the new President, but is not expected to prevent him from progressing much of his agenda.

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The increasing assertiveness of China, and the rise of cross Strait tensions is a growing concern for many countries within the Indo Pacific and beyond. We all want to see peace and stability in a region whose maritime trade routes play a vital role in the global economy. Many commentators speculate on what conclusions the different protagonists will have drawn from the responses to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.?

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Yet visiting Taiwan, you do not get the impression of a place under siege. Taipei is a bustling modern city, with shiny skyscrapers (including Taipei 101, which was the world’s tallest building until 2009) and lively night markets. It has the confidence of an economy which is the world’s 22nd largest, and home to TSMC, the titan of the global semiconductor industry. Taiwan is a significant trading partner for the UK, with trade of ￡8bn in 2023, just under half of which was UK exports. The British Office in Taipei are busy promoting cooperation on a range of issues from science and innovation to culture, as well as trade and investment.

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I was interested to see many physical traces of Japan, old and new. Japan was the colonial power in Taiwan from 1895-1945. Some of my interlocutors commented on the cultural familiarity and the friendship they feel for Japan.

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In balmy subtropical January sunshine, I also enjoyed a side-trip to the seaside town of Tamsui, just outside Taipei. I visited the red-painted Fort San Domingo, originally founded by the Spanish, then rebuilt by the Dutch in the 17th century , and later used by the British as our Consulate from 1868 to 1972. It’s now a museum, and wandering around the former Consulate and Consul’s residence, I felt a certain familiarity.