The US and Taiwan have reached an agreement on tariffs. This is a move with which the White House aims to curb Beijing’s regional influence
Washington strengthens ties with Taipei. The United States announced that it has concluded a trade agreement with Taiwan. Under the agreement, the island agreed to reduce almost all of its tariff barriers on American products, while the US, for its part, lowered its tariff rates to 15%. “Taiwan also pledged to increase its purchases of U.S. goods by 2029, including $44.4 billion in liquefied natural gas and crude oil, $15.2 billion in civil aircraft and engines, and $25.2 billion in electrical equipment, power grids and other equipment,” it reported The Hill.
“President Trump’s leadership in the Asia-Pacific region continues to generate prosperous trade ties for the United States with important partners throughout Asia, further advancing the economic and national security interests of the American people,” said US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, adding: “The Reciprocal Trade Agreement with Taiwan will eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers that burden US exports to Taiwan, expanding opportunities for American farmers, ranchers, fishermen, workers, small businesses and manufacturers.” “This agreement,” he continued, “also builds on our well-established economic and trade relationship with Taiwan and will significantly improve the resilience of our supply chains, particularly in high-tech sectors.”
We recall that, in January, Washington and Taipei had reached an agreement in the microchip sector. In exchange for a reduction in tariff pressure, Taiwan had committed to investing 250 billion dollars in the United States in the semiconductor and artificial intelligence sectors. However, it was last December, when the Trump administration announced arms sales to Taipei worth over ten billion dollars. This was a move that significantly irritated Beijing.
And here we come to the geopolitical side of the matter. The White House is strengthening its relationship with Taiwan mainly to stem Chinese influence in the Far East and to increase its competitiveness in some strategic sectors (starting, obviously, with semiconductors). It is no coincidence that the Taiwanese dossier was one of the topics discussed during the phone call held last week between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. It is therefore quite likely that this topic will be at the center of the visit that the American president is expected to make to the People’s Republic of China in April.
