Eighty years in the past, the Allies—led by the United States’s Greatest Generation—triumphed and ended the worldwide carnage of World War II. The tales of how the Republic of China (Taiwan) fought facet by facet with our American allies nonetheless resonate in Taiwan, particularly the heroic exploits of the Flying Tigers, the First American Volunteer Group (AVG) of the ROC Air Force.
It is necessary to recollect this historical past, notably because the People’s Republic of China (PRC) engages in revisionism that falsely casts the communists because the central pressure in that battle. The power of Taiwan-U.S. ties was solid within the fires of that battle and has solely grown stronger with time.
Pilots of the American Volunteer Group stroll in entrance of their Flying Tigers fighter planes, cira 1941. The Flying Tigers flew in Asia with the Nationalist forces of Chiang Kai-Shek throughout World War II. (CORBIS/Corbis by way of Getty Images)
In the years after the ROC relocated to Taiwan, U.S. support was important in serving to us survive and rebuild. With that assist—and the industrious spirit of the Taiwanese individuals—we reworked from an agricultural economic system into a world know-how chief. By the flip of the millennium, Taiwan had constructed a world-class semiconductor business, supplying chips that energy America’s most progressive corporations, from Apple to NVIDIA and AMD. In some ways, Taiwan has been the silent companion behind the rise of U.S. tech as a world powerhouse—and with a watch on the long run, we’ll proceed to assist American corporations lead within the age of synthetic intelligence.
Today, “bringing manufacturing again to U.S. soil” is the mantra of the Trump administration. Taiwan absolutely shares this imaginative and prescient. Our corporations are increasing investments within the United States, as proven by TSMC’s $165 billion funding in Arizona. In reality, 40 p.c of Taiwan’s outbound funding now goes to the U.S.—a testomony to the standard of the American market and our dedication to U.S. reindustrialization. At this 12 months’s Taiwan Expo USA, held August 14–16 in Dallas, greater than 180 Taiwanese corporations got here to do enterprise, underscoring our function as a prime international investor in Texas over the previous 18 months.
President Donald Trump, proper, and C.C. Wei, chief government officer of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), shake palms throughout an funding announcement on the White House in Washington, DC, on March 3, 2025. (Samuel Corum/Sipa/Bloomberg by way of Getty Images)
The financial and safety partnership between Taiwan and the U.S. go hand in hand. At the Shangri-La Dialogue this May, U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth emphasised the significance of stability within the Indo-Pacific—a area that’s dwelling to greater than half the world’s inhabitants and almost two-thirds of world GDP. As a accountable stakeholder, Taiwan has persistently reaffirmed its dedication to sustaining peace and stability within the area. To that finish, President Lai has pledged to boost Taiwan’s 2026 protection funds to $31.08 billion, or 3.32 p.c of GDP, with the aim of reaching 5 p.c by 2030. We are additionally getting ready a particular initiative to accumulate as much as $10 billion in U.S. made protection methods. Since 2016, the U.S. has permitted greater than $26 billion in arms gross sales to Taiwan—$18.76 billion of that in President Trump’s first time period alone.
Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te delivers an deal with to mark the primary anniversary of his inauguration on the Presidential Office in Taipei on May 20, 2025. (CHENG YU-CHEN/AFP by way of Getty Images)
At the identical time, Taiwan is intensively growing uneven capabilities, strengthening our reserve forces, and advancing whole-of-society resilience. Our tenet is obvious: peace by way of power. Our goal is to create a stage of deterrence so credible that the concept of attacking Taiwan by no means even enters an adversary’s plans. This shouldn’t be provocation, however prudence. The individuals of Taiwan love peace. President Lai has repeatedly emphasised that we search dialogue with the PRC. But let there be little doubt: we’re ready to defend our freedom and lifestyle if crucial.
On this eightieth anniversary of the top of World War II, Taiwan stands as a steadfast pal of the United States. We sit up for working with Washington to make sure that U.S. management—and Taiwan-U.S. partnership—proceed to form a peaceable and affluent world for the subsequent 80 years and past.
Ambassador Alexander Tah-Ray Yui is Taiwan’s consultant to the United States.
