Arizona opens Taiwan office despite Chinese pressure to block it

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs joined Taiwanese leaders Monday to open a new economic and cultural office in Phoenix. It is Taiwan’s 14th representative office in the United States. The office is intended to deepen technology collaboration, especially in semiconductor manufacturing, and to serve Phoenix’s growing Taiwanese community.

Before the opening, China’s consulate general in Los Angeles sent Hobbs two letters urging her to oppose the plan, according to documents the governor’s office shared with The Associated Press. The July 3 letter asked her to reject what it called a political attempt by Taiwan and to avoid harming friendship and cooperation between China and Arizona. A second letter on Aug. 21 repeated that stance. Phoenix radio station KJZZ first reported the letters.

At Monday’s ceremony, Hobbs said every Arizona elected official should have the courage to support the Arizona-Taiwan partnership. She added that the state is mobilizing all available resources to help Taiwanese companies expand in Arizona.

China’s Embassy in the U.S. said Monday that it firmly opposes official interactions of any form between Taiwan and American federal or state governments, according to spokesperson Liu Chang. Beijing claims Taiwan as a breakaway province inseparable from China, while Taiwan considers itself separate from the mainland and has its own government. Scholars say local-level collaborations involving China and Taiwan have become more politicized as U.S.-China relations have worsened.

Taiwan’s economic presence in Arizona has been growing. TSMC has pledged $100 billion to expand its operations in northern Phoenix, bringing its total investment in the city to $265 billion — the largest foreign direct investment in U.S. history. About 500 Taiwanese engineers are working to ramp up production at TSMC in Arizona, according to Jason Hsu, a former Taiwanese lawmaker and senior fellow at the Hudson Institute. Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego also described a baby boom in the city’s Taiwanese communities, with some labor and delivery rooms starting Mandarin-language programs.