A national security forum initiated by heavyweight leaders of Silicon Valley companies and members of Congress was held in Washington, D.C. on May 1. Vice President-elect of the Republic of China, Hsiao Mei-chin, delivered a pre-recorded video speech, advocating for Taiwan’s inclusion in the “Security of Supply Arrangements” that the United States is promoting to join in defense industrial cooperation with the U.S. and its allies.
Hsiao Mei-chin, in her capacity as Vice President-elect of Taiwan, delivered a 7-minute pre-recorded speech at the “Hill & Valley Forum” held at the “Congressional Hill and Silicon Valley Forum.” Her speech followed the first panel discussion themed “Perspectives on the U.S.-China Techno-Economic War and the Impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on National Security.”
The focus of the forum was on artificial intelligence and national security issues. Hsiao Mei-chin emphasized the importance of Taiwan-U.S. cooperation in the fields of technology and national security. She highlighted Taiwan’s crucial position in the global technology supply chain and expressed her hope for increased cooperation between Taiwan and the U.S., both in the public and private sectors, to build a more resilient defense industry and stronger deterrence capabilities.
Hsiao Mei-chin pointed out the severe and urgent security challenges faced by Taiwan and the U.S. in dealing with daily cyber threats, protecting telecommunications, safeguarding critical infrastructure, and securing air and sea spaces, while upholding democratic values and basic freedoms. Taiwan’s goal is to maintain a strong and sufficient deterrence capability to avoid conflicts.
She also mentioned that in recent years, Taiwan and the U.S. have had many discussions about Taiwan acquiring asymmetric defense systems, but traditional asymmetric systems are insufficient to meet Taiwan’s defense objectives. The scale and pace of the U.S. defense industrial production capacity are imbalanced with global demand, and Taiwan and the U.S. must find innovative ways to stay ahead in the race.
In 2015, the U.S. Department of Defense established the “Defense Innovation Unit” to apply cutting-edge technologies to the military field more rapidly and cost-effectively. Hsiao Mei-chin stated that Taiwan is learning from this practice and will establish a similar mechanism. After each country determines its policy direction, they must address the same challenges in defense industrial production capacity and scale.
Hsiao Mei-chin mentioned that the U.S. Department of Defense released the “National Defense Industry Strategy” report earlier this year, emphasizing the necessity of cooperation with allies and partners, which Taiwan is highly interested in. Through close cooperation or joint production, Taiwan and the U.S. can enhance the resilience and efficiency of the defense industry supply chain.
She emphasized that Taiwan’s excellent hardware manufacturing capabilities, combined with Taiwan’s production of materials, machine tools, and chips, along with its skilled labor force, and the U.S.’s innovative advantages in software, design, system integration, and AI in the security field, can efficiently and reliably manufacture almost anything. Taiwan is a key stakeholder in curbing the authoritarian expansion of the Chinese Communist Party, has the determination for self-defense, and producing defense systems independently is one of the efforts to maintain regional stability.
Hsiao Mei-chin urged participants to support Taiwan’s inclusion in the “Security of Supply Arrangements” mentioned in the U.S.’s National Defense Industry Strategy report and looked forward to further developing partnerships with both the public and private sectors in the U.S. to establish a more resilient defense industry and stronger deterrence capabilities.
According to information from the official website of the “Hill & Valley Forum,” this forum is a non-governmental organization composed of startups and bipartisan members of Congress aiming to address urgent national security issues through technology solutions.
Hsiao Mei-chin stated that she was invited to speak by Jacob Helberg, a member of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) of the U.S. Congress. The USCC, established in 2000, investigates the impact of bilateral U.S.-China trade and economic relations on U.S. national security and submits annual reports to Congress. Helberg is also a consultant to Palantir Technologies, a major U.S. data analysis company.
The Washington Post reported that the “Hill & Valley Forum” originated from a dinner two years ago, convened by Helberg, where Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and members of Congress met. The forum dinner was sponsored by Peter Thiel, a partner at the Founders Fund, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm, and a co-founder of both PayPal and Palantir.
The meeting was the first public event of the “Hill & Valley Forum” and has become one of the most influential lobbying forces of the U.S. technology industry in Washington, D.C. Recently, the U.S. legislature called for ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, to divest from the short-video sharing platform within a year, or face possible U.S. sanctions. The drafting and lobbying efforts of this legislation involved the organization’s participation.
(Translated from Central News Agency)