TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The US will not abandon Taiwan due to its semiconductor prowess, Deputy Foreign Minister Francois Wu (吳志中) said in a Globe and Mail interview published on (Nov. 9). 

“Mr. Trump wants to make America great again. I think without Taiwan, he cannot make America great again. He needs the semiconductors made here,” Wu said. He pointed out that Taiwan produces more than 60% of the world’s semiconductor chips and more than 90% of the most advanced chips.

In response to Trump’s previous remarks about forcing Taiwan to pay more for US military assistance, Wu said Taipei has nearly doubled its defense budget in the past eight years. There is also a backlog of US weapons Taiwan previously ordered that has yet to be delivered, the deputy foreign minister said.

Taiwan would be open to buying more advanced weapons such as the F-35 fighter jet if the US made it available, Wu said. He believes the US under Trump would still act to protect its interests in case a conflict broke out in the Taiwan Strait. 

Wu said Taiwan’s strategy can be described as a “not today” policy. This approach keeps Chinese leader Xi Jinping (習近平) thinking, “every day when he wakes up that today is not the day to invade Taiwan.”