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Taiwan¡¦s ties with
China a problem, meeting hears
By William Lowther / Staff reporter in WASHINGTON
Taiwan¡¦s economic ¡§over-dependency¡¨ on China was not in the nation¡¦s best
strategic interests, a Washington conference was told on Thursday.
¡§It may be used in the future to hurt Taiwan in very profound ways,¡¨ US-Taiwan
Business Council president Rupert Hammond-Chambers said.
He said the supply chain drove Taiwanese investment in ways that were near
impossible for the government to control.
He was addressing the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
conference on ¡§Staying Ahead of the Economic Curve: Taiwan and its Rivals in
East Asia.¡¨
A Wilson Center official asked the conference if Taiwan could afford to engage
in high-tech trade with China when it was such a potential adversary.
¡§Taiwan is caught between a rock and a hard place,¡¨ Hammond-Chambers said. ¡§Many
would agree that the Chinese do not have the same intention for their
relationship with Taiwan that Taiwan has for its relationship with China.¡¨
The Taiwanese, he said, ¡§can¡¦t help themselves.¡¨
Hammond-Chambers said Taiwan¡¦s economy remained in ¡§deep distress.¡¨
While unemployment was still relatively low, that was because of an increase in
tourism and investment to improve infrastructure
There was unwillingness, he said, to push for needed domestic reform and when
President Ma Ying-jeou (°¨^¤E) did try to tackle the problem, ¡§domestic political
forces absolutely hammered him.¡¨
Hammond-Chambers said that 20 or 30 years ago, Taiwan could argue it was
competing well with South Korea.
¡§Now, that is just not the case,¡¨ he said
The South Koreans were ¡§significantly pulling away from Taiwan and it¡¦s a big
problem, ¡¨ he said.
Hammond-Chambers said that Taiwan¡¦s response to South Korea was ¡§unclear¡¨ but
that South Korea ¡§casts an extremely long shadow across Taiwan¡¦s economy.¡¨
He said there was ¡§some angst¡¨ about what the future held for Taiwan, but that
it was essential that the nation continued ¡§the long slog¡¨ toward developing its
own global brands.
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