TAIPEI (TVBS News) — President-elect Lai Ching-te announced on Thursday (April 25) that Joseph Wu Jaushieh, who has served as minister of foreign affairs for over six years, will take over as secretary-general of the National Security Council.
Wu, well-known for his extensive international expertise, has managed many crises in office, including the China–United States trade war in 2018, the global COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Significant worldwide attention has been drawn to Wu's "unconventional" manner as a foreign minister. He has performed around 300 interviews or tea sessions with foreign journalists between 2018 and the end of 2023, earning him a reputation for using plain language and being skilled in handling the media.
Taiwan-US relations were one of Wu's primary focus when he was there. In recent years, he witnessed a new peak in relations, which included welcoming U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, starting the U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade, and getting the U.S. Congress to support several pro-Taiwan bills, eliminating double taxation.
Wu is also a pioneer, witnessing significant progress in Taiwan's relations with Central and Eastern Europe, including the Czech Republic and Lithuania, and continuously promoting the New Southbound Policy.
However, Wu had to face China's increasing pressure on Taiwan's international environment, with the number of diplomatic allies falling to just 12. Taiwan lost eight diplomatic allies during Wu's term, including the Dominican Republic, Burkina Faso, El Salvador, Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Nicaragua, Honduras, and Nauru.
Wu's largest task as he moves from being a front-line diplomatic combatant to the secretary-general of the National Security Council will be making the most of his wealth of expertise.