The column below reflects the views of the author, and these opinions are neither endorsed nor supported by WisOpinion.com.
Amid the period of 2014-2018 to 2019-2023, Taiwan’s outbound FDI (OFDI) to U.S. had grown 317%, while U. S. OFDI to Taiwan increased 201%; and the US-Taiwan two ways trade volumes increased by around 50% in the period of 2021-2023. In addition, Taiwan and the State of Wisconsin have enjoyed a long and mutually beneficial relationship with the prospect of future growth, and Taiwan was Wisconsin ’s fourth-largest export market in Asia in 2023 with US$380 million worth of Wisconsin goods exported to Taiwan. Given that afore-mentioned data, I am writing to highlight the fact that Taiwan is an indispensable partner in global supply chains, producing over 90 percent of the world’s high-end semiconductors and a significant portion of the advanced chips driving the AI revolution, as Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has just created a task force on Workforce and AI in July 2024. Additionally, half of the world’s seaborne trade passes through the Taiwan Strait, making it a key international waterway.
Yet even though large parts of the world—and billions of people—have enjoyed great prosperity thanks to the peace and stability prevailing across the strait, PRC/China continues to intensify its aggressive actions against Taiwan. Beijing’s attempts to change the status quo and expand authoritarianism throughout the Indo-Pacific region are actually deteriorating peace and security all around the world.
In my opinion, the UN must address the afore-mentioned challenge by curbing China’s pressure and refraining from further distorting UN General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 2758 adopted in 1971 any further. Beijing’s tactic of weaponizing Resolution 2758 to spread the fallacy that Taiwan is part of the PRC is a key element in a wider campaign to establish the legal basis for justifying a future armed invasion of Taiwan. Yet Resolution 2758 does not mention Taiwan. It merely addresses the issue of China’s representation in the UN without stating that Taiwan is part of the PRC or ascribing to the PRC any right to represent Taiwan in the UN system. Beijing’s false claims will not only alter the status quo across the Taiwan Strait but also jeopardize peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific and threaten the rules-based international order.
As several senior US officials have criticized the PRC’s distortion of Resolution 2758 to justify its spurious claim over Taiwan, the UN must return to and encourage a correct interpretation of Resolution 2758 and explore means of resisting the PRC’s aggressive ambitions. By introducing rules that justify the boarding and detaining of vessels and allow individuals to enter disputed maritime areas, Beijing aims to assert control over international waters and challenge global norms and claims. Hence, the UN and the international community must reaffirm their concerns about Beijing’s coercive behavior but also work together to prevent its unlawful schemes.
The upcoming 79th UNGA and its Summit of the Future present a timely opportunity to address key security concerns while advancing the broader goals of global sustainable development and building a more resilient global community for current and future generations. Embracing Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the UN system would undoubtedly be the UN’s best option for mitigating any potential regional crisis, maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and spurring global prosperity more, including the USA and Wisconsin state. Taiwan is determined to help power the world forward for many more decades to come.
-Dennis Yen-Feng Lei is director general, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Chicago
