TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) founder Morris Chang (張忠謀) said Tuesday (July 4) that national security, economic leadership, and technological leadership have become more important than globalization.
He was invited to speak on the subject of globalization at an event marking the 70th anniversary of the Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce (CNAIC), one of Taiwan’s top business associations. President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) also attended the celebration.
After sketching a history of globalization, Chang concluded that a new definition of the issue had emerged, the Liberty Times reported. As long as national security, and present and future economic and technological leadership were not affected, a country could allow its enterprises to seek profit overseas, and foreign products and services to enter its market, he said.
Chang ended with the question of whether this still amounted to globalization. He did not provide an answer himself, but said it was up to his audience of CNAIC members to think of an answer.
Billions of people had been lifted out of poverty by 2010, but that was followed by a backlash against globalization as China subsidized its technology sector and announced it would be self-sufficient in semiconductors in 2025, Chang said. The U.S. imposed tariffs on imports from China and expressed differences about intellectual property rights.
As a result, the relationship between the U.S. and China has turned into a combination of competition and cooperation, but at present, competition plays a larger part than cooperation, Chang said.