Lin Chia-lung meets Michigan Governor Whitmer, focusing on tech supply chain resilience.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung officially met this week with Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and her delegation, who are visiting Taiwan. The two sides engaged in deep and extensive exchanges of views on core issues of current global interest, including bilateral economic and trade cooperation, high-tech industry linkages, and supply chain resilience. Whitmer's leadership of a representative delegation of business and political figures not only demonstrates the high regard US local governments hold for Taiwan, but also highlights the steady progress in substantive diplomatic and economic partnerships between Taiwan and the US. Particularly amid current geopolitical shifts, exchanges at the local level often serve as the most pragmatic and solid force driving bilateral relations.

During the meeting, Lin expressed the Taiwan government's aspiration to continuously deepen Taiwan-US relations. At this critical moment of global supply chain restructuring, Taiwan looks forward to joining hands with Michigan to jointly build highly secure and prosperous industrial supply chains. Long a traditional automotive hub in the US, Michigan has actively transformed in recent years, vigorously developing forward-looking fields such as electric vehicles, semiconductor applications, and advanced manufacturing. These development directions align closely with Taiwan's strengths in semiconductors, information and communication technology, and precision machinery, providing an exceptional foundation for cooperation based on mutual industrial complementarity.

Reviewing recent bilateral interactions between Taiwan and the US, economic and trade diplomacy between Taiwan and various US states has achieved remarkable results. Many US governors have led delegations to visit Taiwan and established trade offices on the island, aiming to seize the opportunity to ride the wave of Taiwan's globally leading position in the high-tech and semiconductor sectors. Holding a pivotal position in the US manufacturing landscape, Whitmer's personal visit aims not only to consolidate existing industrial cooperation, but also to seek key partners from Taiwan amidst the next-generation technological wave, ensuring Michigan's presence in global supply chain security.

For Taiwan, actively hosting US state governors and promoting economic and trade cooperation at the local level is an important strategy for expanding its international survival space and strengthening substantive diplomacy. Through in-depth dialogues with major US states boasting deep industrial roots like Michigan, Taiwan can not only prove to the international community its value as an indispensable economic and technological partner within the democratic camp, but also substantially safeguard the deployment and development of its high-tech industries in the global market, further solidifying Taiwan's core position in international supply chains.

Looking ahead, through this meeting between Lin and Whitmer, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has laid a more solid foundation for Taiwan-US cooperation in economic, trade, and supply chain security. The two sides are expected to launch more concrete alignment and cooperation projects in areas such as electric vehicle supply chains, automotive chip research and development, talent cultivation, and green energy in the future. This will not only help enhance the visibility and investment footprint of Taiwanese enterprises in the US Midwest, but will also create mutually beneficial economic prosperity for both Taiwan and the US, jointly addressing various challenges in future global economic shifts.