South Africa bullies Taiwan. Taiwan fights back.
Luby Liao
The move reflects Taiwan’s economic clout and a growing frustration with getting sidelined by Beijing in the diplomatic community.
Taiwan curbs its exports of chips to South Africa
- Bloomberg
A silicon wafer is displayed at SEMICON Taiwan in Taipei on Sept. 11.Photo: Ritchie B.
Tongo, EPA
Luby Liao
Taiwan officials are testing out semiconductors as a diplomatic sword.
On Tuesday, Taipei for the first time unilaterally imposed semiconductor export controls on a country, limiting shipments to South Africa for actions that “undermined our national and public security.”
Yesterday, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said it had decided to pause the controls as South Africa agreed to re-enter talks about relocating Taiwan’s representative office from Pretoria to Johannesburg.
Taiwan weaponizes chip sector to deter Beijing
- Bloomberg
For years, Taiwan has viewed its dominance in supplying countries with cutting-edge chips as a shield from Chinese aggression. Now, officials are testing out semiconductors as a diplomatic sword.
On Tuesday, Taipei for the first time unilaterally imposed semiconductor export controls on a country, limiting shipments to South Africa for actions that “undermined our national and public security.”
Yesterday, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said it had decided to pause the controls as South Africa agreed to re-enter talks about relocating Taiwan’s representative office from Pretoria to Johannesburg.
The Taipei Liaison Office in South Africa is pictured in Pretoria on Oct. 22 last year.
Photo: REUTERS
Taipei’s chip curbs reflect its strategy to increasingly use economic and trade policy for diplomatic goals, a Taiwanese official familiar with the matter said.
Similar measures could be imposed on other unfriendly nations, they added.
“By utilizing Taiwan’s position in the global chip supply chain, this looks like Taipei’s attempt at building an autonomous deterrent on the world stage,” said Sung Wen-ti (宋文笛), non-resident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub. “Going forward, other governments will be looking at this example and considering not only Taiwan’s carrots, but also its potential sticks.”’
While Taiwan likely would not wield such restrictions against major European economies or the US, President William Lai’s (賴清德) decision to target smaller partners could amplify broader concerns over its dominance of chips.
Export controls on semiconductors and chipmaking equipment have become a central battleground between the US and China in recent years, with Washington pressuring allies including the Netherlands, South Korea and Japan to adopt policies despite their potential to hurt domestic companies.
That has ramped up the need for countries to maintain a degree of supply chain self-reliance, even from friendly partners.
China is perhaps most exposed to Taiwan’s controls, as Lai becomes more assertive in countering Beijing’s aggression.
Earlier this year, Taiwan blacklisted Chinese tech giants Huawei Technologies Co and Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp from accessing crucial chip plant construction technology, signaling a willingness to ramp up its use of trade tools.
Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Guo Jiakun (郭嘉昆) on Wednesday told a regular news briefing in Beijing that Taiwan had “deliberately destabilized global” supply chains with its action against South Africa.
The South Africa policy is still in its “notification period,” said Cathy Fang (方怡然), an analyst at the Research Institute for Democracy, Society and Emerging Technology in Taipei, suggesting the government was leaving room for negotiation.
“The global push for domestic semiconductor manufacturing has already been underway for some time and is driven by broader strategic concerns,” she said, downplaying the potential impact of skirmishes like the one with South Africa.
South Africa relies significantly on foreign automaking plants for its economic growth.
While Taiwan’s actions could affect those operations, the official said such companies generally source semiconductors through global automakers rather than directly from manufacturers in Taiwan — a signal the curbs were not intended to apply maximum pain.
Underscoring the symbolic nature of the action, official data from Taiwan show that last year it exported to South Africa about US$4 million of the goods included on the export suspension list.
William Yang, a senior analyst for North East Asia at the International Crisis Group, described Taiwan’s response to South Africa’s demands as simply “self defense,” which could inspire solidarity in some parts.
“The move might even push like-minded democracies to deepen supply chain cooperation with Taiwan,” he added.
Luby Liao
台晶片禁令奏效 「親中」南非請求協商
南非政府配合中國頻頻打壓我國主權，經濟部日前擬祭出半導體、晶片輸出管制，親中的南非政府向外交部傳達請求協商，同意協商我駐斐館處地位。（路透檔案照）
〔記者林菁樺、廖家寧、黃靖媗／台北報導〕南非政府配合中國頻頻打壓我國主權，經濟部日前擬祭出半導體、晶片輸出管制，但昨宣布暫停發出預告。外交部說明，因我國駐南非代表處已接獲南非政府請求，將針對我駐斐館處地位進行協商，在與經濟部協調後，同意暫緩預告程序；經濟部長龔明鑫表示，外交部所有的外交措施有其整體規劃與考量，經濟部尊重並配合。
經部：配合外交部 暫緩預告
南非政府七月二十一日在未與我國協商下，以政府公報發布公告，逕將我國在南非兩駐處自四月一日起分別改名為「駐約翰尼斯堡台北商務辦事處」及「駐開普敦台北商務辦事處」，外交部七月底宣布將研議反制措施。
南非政府傳達 同意協商我駐斐館處地位
外交部解釋，我半導體、晶片等貨品輸出南非改採核准制的預告，僅是進入預告程序前的資訊揭露，尚未刊登行政院公報中心，因此並未進入正式預告程序；由於我國駐南非代表處已接獲南非政府請求針對我駐斐館處地位進行協商的訊息，經與經濟部協調，同意暫緩上揭預告程序。
龔明鑫昨日被問及這次是否是一次以貿易手段成功捍衛主權的案例，他僅表示，外交部所有的外交措施皆有整體規劃與考量，經濟部尊重並配合。
