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The election ended a month ago and America has a new president in what turned out to be somewhat of a landslide. As a result, the Republican Party controls both the U.S. Senate and House.

What’s important now is the future and major challenges facing the United States. One of them that’s talked about is Tawain. It is the chip technology manufacturing center of the world. The future of America depends highly on Tawain’s chip industry.

Tawain, also known as Formosa, is an island located approximately 100 miles off the coast of China.  Officially, it is the Republic of China. (ROC) Taiwan is 13,826 square miles with a population of around 23.9 million people.

Most everybody in the world calls it Taiwan, they don’t want to insult the People’s Republic of China. They believe Taiwan belongs to them. The ROC disagrees. The Republic of China relocated to Formosa in 1949 while fighting a civil war with the Chinese Communist Party and has been their permanent home ever since.

According to the 2023 World Competitive Yearbook Survey, Taiwan is ranked eighth in technological infrastructure and fifth in scientific infrastructure. According to the United States Department of State, Taiwan was the United States seventh largest trading partner in 2023. The U.S. was Taiwan’s second largest trading partner the same year. The Peoples Republic of China is Taiwan’s largest trading partner. Taiwan is of critical importance to both China and the United States.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM) is valued at $1.046 trillion in the S&P 500 stock index. TSM manufactures at least 90% of the world’s most advanced computer chips

Nvidia, the second-highest valued company on the S&P 500 stock index and recent addition to the Dow, is TSM’s largest customer. Nvidia is valued at $3.355 trillion on the S & P stock Index. Apple at $3.863 trillion is the only company with a higher value than Nvidia.

Nvidia designs and is the dominant supplier of the high-tech Artificial Intelligence chips which are manufactured by TSM. Nvidia is a multinational technology corporation headquartered in Santa Clara, California. They also design and supply the software needed for artificial intelligence.

China and Taiwan are becoming more intertwined all the time. Many believe that China will eventually invade and take over Taiwan. I don’t believe that will happen. Eventually over time, Taiwan will merge into China. No shots will be fired; no invasion will take place. That’s just my opinion and is a possibility.

If and when Taiwan becomes part of China, the Chinese will have control of the highest chip and semiconductor technology in the world unless the U.S. does something. Taiwan would be an immense loss to the United States.

Americans are extremely innovative and have developed superior technologies compared to other parts of the world. The United States needs to protect their technology and keep the manufacturing in the United States in the future. Make no mistake, these are high paying jobs which need to stay in the United States. We do not need to have whatever technology advantage we still have slip away or give it away over greed.

Maybe it’s not too late to save Taiwan?

Al Klemm is a Washington resident and a former Beaufort County Commissioner.