TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan is turning to conservative media to reach US President Donald Trump, as worries grow over potential concessions in talks with China, Reuters reported Friday.
Unable to directly call Trump due to its diplomatic status, Taiwan has sought alternative channels with the backing of the White House. Senior officials said the outreach aims to ensure that Trump hears of Taipei’s determination to defend itself.
Since taking office, Trump has wavered on Taiwan policy while pursuing a trade deal with Beijing. He said Chinese leader Xi Jinping assured him that China will not invade while he remains in office but has yet to approve new US arms sales to Taipei.
Taiwan fears that a Trump-Xi meeting next week in South Korea could jeopardize its security. Four senior Taiwan officials described jitters over the talks, fueling a local “US skepticism” theory questioning Washington’s commitment.
“Everyone in Taiwan is worried and it is the government’s job to make sure that it will not happen,” a senior official told Reuters, referring to concerns Trump might sacrifice Taiwan’s interests to Xi.
Locked out of the White House due to a lack of formal diplomatic ties, Taiwan’s representatives have courted conservative US media. President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) appeared this month on Buck Sexton’s podcast and radio show, part of a broader effort to reach Trump supporters.
On Sexton’s show, Lai backed Trump’s bid for a Nobel Peace Prize if he could convince China to abandon the use of force over Taiwan.
“We cannot simply call up Trump, so we have had to find other ways to talk to him,” a second Taiwanese official said on condition of anonymity. A US administration official confirmed that Trump aides encouraged Taiwan to engage with “new media” to reach “real Americans instead of liberal elites.”
Taiwan’s outreach is not limited to such media. Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) gave an interview to the Shawn Ryan Show in June while former Presidential Office Spokesperson Lii Wen (李問) wrote a May op-ed in the Washington Times.
The Presidential Office said communication with the US remains “smooth” and that Taipei will continue to pursue bipartisan support. “As for building broad, cross-party pro-Taiwan networks among our international friends and allies, including the US, this has always been an important task of the governing team,” it said.
Taiwan has lost some key US allies, including former Trump adviser John Bolton but retains supporters such as Senator Marco Rubio. To reassure Washington, Taiwan has emphasized its commitment to increased defense spending and strengthening security cooperation.
“Ensuring peace through strength and boosting security through cooperation is our goal,” Lai told visiting foreign guests, including American Conservative Union Chair Matt Schlapp. Schlapp said Taiwan and the US have a security partnership that should not be diminished.
The US State Department has reiterated its “enduring commitment” to Taiwan, while continuing to support the country’s defense reforms. The administration also encouraged Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) to visit New York during the UN General Assembly and condemn China’s attempts to pressure and isolate Taiwan.
