Taiwan’s security is critical to the global computer chip supply chain. That is what the Taiwanese Minister of Economic Affairs said. Taiwan is a significant producer of chips, but China sees the island off the Chinese coast as a renegade province.
In recent days, Chinese warplanes have frequently violated Taiwanese airspace. The United States has already called on China to stop this “provocative” behaviour.
The Taiwanese chip group TSMC is one of the largest chip manufacturers in the world. If a conflict flares up between China and Taiwan, the supply of chips could be disrupted. “Taiwan has created a strong ecosystem for the production of chips,” said Minister Wang Mei-hua. “The global community needs to take Taiwan’s security more seriously so that we can continue our services and remain a good partner for all.”
TSMC is, among other things, an important customer of the Dutch chip machine maker ASML. However, Wang does not think that companies in the world are too dependent on Taiwanese chips. She states that her country is simply a very efficient producer, which brings many customers to Taiwan. “The chip sector is an important pillar of our economy and security,” Wang said.