House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) met with several of Taiwan’s chip industry leaders during her visit to Taipei on Tuesday to promote closer commercial ties between the two countries following the House’s passage of legislation funding new chip production capabilities in the United States.
Pelosi met with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Chairman Mark Liu during the visit, according to senior lawmakers in Taiwan. The pair discussed the CHIPS Act, which the House passed last week and sent to President Joe Biden to sign into law. The bill would provide hundreds of billions of dollars to fund U.S. innovation. The legislation includes a $52 billion subsidy for chipmakers like Intel in hopes of weaning off a total reliance on Taiwan for semiconductors.
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Pelosi met with Liu and several other industry officials during a lunch with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, a TSMC spokesperson told the Washington Examiner.
The House speaker praised the passage of CHIPS as “a great opportunity for U.S.-Taiwan economic cooperation” during a Wednesday press conference.
“We just passed the CHIPS and Science Act. That is something that opens the door for us to have better economic exchanges. … The entrepreneur spirit, the brain power, and the intellectual resources that exist in Taiwan — and the success of the tech industry here — has really been a model, and we want to increase our relationship,” Pelosi added.
Taiwan has maintained control of the semiconductor markets for several years. The country currently controls 48% of the world’s semiconductor foundries and 61% of the ability to build the more advanced 16nm chips, according to data released by TrendForce. However, the country’s leading semiconductor foundry, TSMC, has struggled to keep up with demand, leading to the current shortage of semiconductors across the world.
Its problems have also created security concerns. U.S. officials have been concerned about the national security threats that a China-controlled semiconductor market would have on future military operations. This, in part, led to legislators such as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) seeking to pass the CHIPS Act, which would help build additional foundries in the United States and help the country wean off of total reliance on China and Taiwan. TSMC finished constructing a $12 billion plant in Arizona to expand its efforts outside of Taiwan. The plant is expected to begin operations in 2024.
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The House voted 243-187 in favor of the legislation on July 28, a vote complicated by GOP anger over Senate Democrats unveiling a surprise agreement on significant climate and healthcare legislation meant to pass without Republican votes. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) had said that Republicans would block the semiconductor legislation if Democrats threatened to pass the partisan climate and healthcare spending bill.
Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan stirred up a notable amount of tension between the two countries. China scrambled its military on Tuesday after Pelosi landed in Taiwan, threatening to act. Pelosi visited with multiple officials during her time in Taiwan and stated that the U.S. support for Taiwan’s democracy “remains ironclad.”
