In early August, the Arizona Diamondbacks hosted the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chase Field in downtown Phoenix. The Dodgers won, but for the Taiwanese community in the state, it offered something more.
The Diamondbacks regularly host games recognizing different cultures, and this was its third Taiwanese Heritage Celebration.
Win Huang leads a Taiwanese trade organization in Phoenix, which was a partner for the event. She noted the recent growth in Arizona’s Taiwanese population after living in the Valley since the 1980s.
“I always wished that I have friends, new friends from Taiwan, but I waited my whole entire life until I'm almost retired and then here comes TSMC,” Huang said. “All of a sudden I run into Taiwanese people all the time.“
The advanced computer chip maker TSMC announced this summer plans to invest $265 billion to expand its operations in Arizona.
To support an influx of migrants, the Taiwanese government is opening the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, which will provide consular services in Phoenix. The office’s director, Kevin Chiao, threw the game’s ceremonial first pitch.
China sends Arizona a warning
The plans to open that office have angered the Chinese government, which claims Taiwan as its own.
One of the letters accuses the office of lending support to Taiwan’s independence from China.
“[The letters] very much adhere to Beijing's firm stance that it will do whatever it takes to reduce Taiwan's international space,” said Lily McElwee, president of the Phoenix Committee on Foreign Relations.
Arizona leaders have worked to attract TSMC in an effort to become a hub for making advanced computer chips. But as Arizona has built up those partnerships with the company and Taiwan, China has ramped up its military posturing against the island.
The same month the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Phoenix was announced, China tested a long range ballistic missile and Taiwan’s military reported a record number of Chinese government and naval ships approaching the island.
McElwee says these are called gray zone tactics, which are designed to fall just short of triggering military intervention from other countries.
“But still be effective in terms of their effects on public opinion and political will within Taiwan,” McElwee said.
Reunification with Taiwan has been a major political goal for Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Michael Hunzeker leads a research team called the Taiwan Security Monitor at George Mason University in Virginia.
“Xi Jinping has really pinned his legitimacy to resolving this problem,” Hunzeker said. “And so he has, and other elites have, kind of been fomenting this sense that Taiwan, inexorable, it has to be solved, it is part of national rejuvenation.”
While President Xi Jinping has reportedly ordered China’s military to be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027, recent U.S. intelligence assessments cast doubt on whether an invasion would happen anytime soon, as questions remain if China has the capabilities.
“We are unlikely to see a major military confrontation over Taiwan in the next couple of years,” Hunzeker said.
Arizona leaders monitor the Taiwan Strait
Still, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego says she and other political leaders are keeping an eye on potential conflict in the region, as the state has ramped up its economic and cultural partnerships with Taiwan.
“We certainly watch the Taiwan Strait and political developments very, very closely and try to plan ahead,” Gallego said.
Gallego says dozens of TSMC’s vendors are building up in Arizona, helping to secure supply chains.
“We talk regularly with folks in the national security world and in TSMC to just make sure we prepare for what we can,” Gallego said.
Taiwan’s fight for democracy
Meanwhile, many living in Taiwan move about their days normally. David Hong is a researcher at the National Tsing Hua University on the island and says he’s grown accustomed to China’s threats of invasion.
"We believe that there is a lack of real motivation for China to do so, unless they really wanted to demonstrate something very political,” Hong said.
While Hong doubts there will be an invasion soon, he hopes the growing partnerships with Arizona will go beyond business deals and cultural exchange. He would like to see the state support Taiwan’s independence as China’s authoritarian government works to cut the island from the global stage.
“The Taiwanese society today actively needs many societies or voices to support its fight for democracy,” Hong said.
Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly says what the state can officially do, beyond its ongoing business deals, is limited. He says while Taiwan is an ally, the U.S. can’t officially recognize the island in order to maintain relations with China.
“We don't want to do something that might compel them to take some action that is not in the best interest of Taiwan, not in our best interest,” Kelly said.
As a senator for the state with TSMC’s growing investments, KJZZ asked if he would support U.S. military intervention to help protect democratic Taiwan from a potential invasion. He declined to comment.
“We have a policy that there is one China,” Kelly said.
But he didn’t say whether that one China includes the island of Taiwan.
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Greg Hahne/KJZZTSMC has elevated Taiwan’s prominence on the global stage. So why is it investing $265 billion in Arizona? -
Greg Hahne/KJZZHow are Arizona and the city of Phoenix responding as TSMC has committed $265 billion in investments in the state?
