Seven Taiwanese lawmakers are making their way to Washington, D.C. to talk tariffs with members of the U.S. Congress and think tanks. Johnny Chiang, the deputy legislative speaker who is leading the cross-party delegation, says their aim goes beyond tariffs, as the delegation seeks to discuss broader, mutually-beneficial Taiwan-U.S. collaborations.
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00:00Taiwanese lawmakers head for Washington, D.C., as the country's ties with its largest international backer hang in the balance.
00:10Leading the group is Deputy Legislative Speaker Johnny Jiang, who says their goal is to seek a permanent reprieve from U.S. President Donald Trump's 32 percent tariff on Taiwanese goods,
00:23part of a sweeping economic policy that sent world markets down.
00:30We both have a benefit, especially with a lot of our industry concerned about payments, we hope we can achieve a relatively low payments.
00:41Jiang and his opposition Kuomintang lawmakers and Taiwan People's Party Delegate Ling Yijun will be joined by three ruling party legislators,
00:50including Wang Dingyu, the head of the legislature's U.S. caucus.
00:54Together, they are scheduled to meet U.S. lawmakers, government agencies, think tanks, and firms.
01:12Taipei has already begun virtual tariff negotiations with Washington, which Taiwanese officials have said are going well.
01:21Days after Trump announced and then paused the levies, President Lai Ching-de laid out what he's willing to offer in a Bloomberg op-ed,
01:30including major purchases of U.S. arms, energy, and agriculture.
01:35The big question being whether this will be enough for Trump.
01:39When I watch government officials talk about the U.S., it's almost like watching a scene from the emperor's new clothes.
01:47That is, look at the fabulous clothes that the emperor has when everybody knows that the emperor has no clothes on.
01:54They talk about the U.S. as if nothing has changed.
01:59Do they actually understand what the Trump administration is?
02:03Economists say Trump will likely want more investments like the multi-billion dollar one from Taiwan's most valuable company, TSMC.
02:12But it's still unclear just how much will be enough to put an end to tariffs.
02:18The concern is Taiwan will get a bad deal.
02:21But it's in a difficult position, relying on the U.S. as a major trading partner and its largest arms supplier against the threat of a Chinese invasion.
02:31I think they underestimate the leverage that they have, which is that having Taiwan thrive and survive is crucial also to American national security.
02:45But you have got to leverage what you have because otherwise, you know, you will be eaten for lunch.
02:53The seven-member delegation is set to be in Washington all week, a high-stakes opportunity to bring Taiwanese interests to the fore, as the 90-day clock on the tariff pause keeps ticking.
03:07Joseph Wu and Joy Sen for Taiwan Plus.
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