TAIPEI (TVBS News) — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA, 外交部) responded to former U.S. President Donald Trump's recent remarks suggesting Taiwan should pay the U.S. for defense. MOFA stated that various American officials have reaffirmed Taiwan's significance and that Taiwan has received bipartisan support.
In an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek, Trump claimed Taiwan should compensate the U.S. for its defense efforts. He argued that defending an island across the globe posed practical challenges and that Taiwan had taken away the U.S. chip business.
Kuoyu Chiao (焦國祐), deputy head of the Department of North American Affairs, stated that the ministry typically does not comment on U.S. presidential candidates' remarks. However, he noted that U.S. officials such as State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, U.S. Congressional Taiwan Caucus Co-Chair Mario Diaz-Balart, and former National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien have reiterated the importance of Taiwan and Taiwan-U.S. relations.
Chiao emphasized that Taiwan and the U.S. share universal values of democracy, freedom, and human rights. He highlighted the mutually beneficial and complementary industrial and economic relations between the two nations, noting that Taiwan has long enjoyed bipartisan and cross-government support in the U.S.
Chiao also mentioned that the U.S. has recently worked with like-minded countries to shape peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait as a consensus between Taiwan and the U.S., regionally, and internationally.