Senior US diplomat arrives in Taiwan as officials downplay Trump comments

By Ben Blanchard and Yimou Lee

TAIPEI (Reuters) -A senior U.S. diplomat who helps manage ties with Taiwan has arrived in Taipei, the de facto U.S. embassy said on Tuesday, as Taiwanese officials sought to downplay Donald Trump’s latest attacks of the island’s crucial chip industry and defence needs.

The United States is Chinese-claimed Taiwan’s most important international supporter and arms supplier despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties.

The American Institute in Taiwan, which manages the unofficial relationship, said its Washington Office Managing Director Ingrid Larson was visiting Taiwan for meetings from Oct. 28 to Nov. 1.

The trip is “part of the United States’ strong commitment to Taiwan and to advance growing U.S.-Taiwan partnership”, it said in a brief statement.

“While in Taiwan, she will discuss continued U.S.-Taiwan collaboration on issues of mutual interest such as regional security, mutually beneficial trade and investment, and people-to-people, educational, and cultural ties.”

Trump, the Republican presidential candidate in the Nov.5 U.S. presidential election, has unnerved democratically governed Taiwan by saying both in July and again over the weekend that Taiwan should pay the United States for its defence and that it had taken American semiconductor business.

“Taiwan, they stole our chip business. They want us to protect and they want protection, they don’t pay us money for the protection,” Trump told “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast over the weekend.

American Depositary Receipts for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, the world’s largest contact chipmaker and major supplier to companies like Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), closed down 4.3% on Monday, while on Tuesday its Taipei-listed shares were down more than 2% after Trump’s comments.

Taiwan Premier Cho Jung-tai, asked on Tuesday about Trump’s latest comments, struck a diplomatic tone, saying Taiwan-U.S. ties are based on being like-minded democratic allies.

“I also believe that the major U.S. political parties have an absolutely high degree of consensus on the understanding of the U.S.-Taiwan relationship” he said.

Economy Minister Kuo Jyh-huei told reporters he respected the remarks of “international friends”.

“U.S. relations with Taiwan have developed steadily over time, and both parties share the same attitude toward Taiwan,” Kuo said.

Taiwan does not have a formal defence treaty with the United States but it has billions of dollars of weapons on order and has repeatedly said it is committed to spending more on its military.

Taiwan’s government rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims.

Taiwan received strong backing from Trump’s 2017-2021 administration, including arms sales, which have continued under the government of U.S. President Joe Biden.

Trump spoke to then-Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen in 2016 shortly after he won the election, prompting anger in Beijing, as the United States does not officially recognise Taiwan’s government, and glee in Taipei.

But with China’s stepped up military activities around Taiwan, including a new round of war games earlier this month, Taipei is nervously watching what a new Trump administration would mean, especially given the tightness of opinion polls.

In the run up to the election over the past three months, two former senior Trump administration officials visited Taiwan – Kelly Craft and Nikki Haley who both served as his ambassadors to the United Nations.

“Trump is going to expect some things from our friends and allies across the world, particularly friends like Taiwan who are under threat. He will expect you to carry your weight as a security partner,” Craft told a security forum in Taipei last month.