TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A former national security official with expertise on Taiwan has rejoined the White House.
The Washington-based security consulting firm Beacon Global Strategies said Tuesday that its Senior Vice President Ivan Kanapathy (簡以榮) will assume the role of senior director for Asia at the National Security Council. Kanapathy, who was previously stationed in Taipei, oversaw Taiwan-related affairs during Trump's first term.
Eric Sayers, Beacon Global Strategies managing director, said in a press release: “Ivan has been an invaluable member of the BGS team, bringing unmatched expertise in Indo-Pacific security and diplomacy.” He will oversee East Asia security issues and interagency coordination at the White House.
A former US Marine, Kanapathy served as director for Taiwan, China, and Mongolia at the NSC during Trump’s first term. From 2014 to 2017, he was assigned by the US Department of Defense to the American Institute in Taiwan, advising the AIT director and senior Taiwanese officials on security matters.
Kanapathy is a proponent of asymmetric strategies and has repeatedly emphasized the importance of Taiwan's resolve to defend itself, per CNA. Late last year, he told CNN that Trump’s comment about Taiwan not paying money for protection indicates Taipei should “dramatically increase spending on US weapons and training, just as it did during the first Trump administration.”
Kanapathy said the security interests of the US and Taiwan significantly intersect, “But the United States can’t want to help Taiwan more than Taiwan wants to help itself. That’s the bottom line.”
Last year, Kanapathy co-authored the book, "The Boiling Moat: Urgent Steps to Defend Taiwan," with former White House Deputy National Security Advisor Matt Pottinger. The book expressed reservations about Taiwan's indigenous submarine program.
During a visit to Taiwan last June for the book’s launch, Kanapathy said the indigenous submarine program consumes significant resources, per CNA.
Given China's disproportionately larger GDP and military budget, Kanapathy argued that Taiwan must use its defense budget wisely. This should be done by developing asymmetric warfare capabilities and investing in fast-moving, dispersed, and highly survivable weapons systems.