Taiwan Clos relations with the EU in return for investment in the chip industry

Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu, during a visit to Europe last week, said that European countries should strengthen ties with Taiwan if they want continued Taiwanese investment in semiconductor production.

Foreign investments” TSMC “the world's largest chipmaker, need government approval, including a possible factory in Germany.

Wu added that the government did not place conditions on TSMC's investment and that it was up to the company to decide whether the project would be profitable.

Investment in Europe

The Taiwanese minister confirmed that his country will not prevent investment in Europe, but there is a "philosophical dilemma", as the country that needs help from Taiwan should look more broadly at its relations with Taipei.

"I think this is something we should think about," Wu said, commenting, "Although we are not selfish in preventing (TSMC) from investing in other countries, we certainly hope that other countries that want to attract (TSMC) it can also think about the situation Taiwan is going through.”

China views self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory that should be brought under Beijing's control, even by force. Taiwan staunchly opposes China's claims to sovereignty and says only the island's residents can decide their future.

Formal diplomatic relations

The minister asked that the country he was in not be disclosed due to the sensitivity of his trip. Taiwan does not have formal diplomatic relations with any European country except the Vatican, and China warned Europe about official relations before Wu's visit.

Wu visited the Czech Republic and also traveled to Brussels, where the European Union and NATO are based.

Wu said that EU leaders have become clearer than before in their advocacy of peace in the Taiwan Strait - which stretches between China and Taiwan - and the maintenance of the status quo, explaining that the bloc should consider more cooperation with Taiwan such as a bilateral investment agreement.

Frozen investment agreement

The EU included Taiwan on its list of potential BIT partners in 2015, but has not held talks with Taiwan on the issue since then.

 In the related context, The Taiwanese minister confirmed that the long waiting period was “very difficult,” adding that he was worried about being held hostage by a frozen investment agreement between the European Union and China.

"We hope that we can take this forward and hope that we can convince the EU leadership to think about this in a positive way," Wu said.