President Tsai Ing-wen Addresses AmCham Taiwan’s 2021 Hsieh Nien Fan

TAIPEI, Taiwan – The American Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan hosted another memorable Hsieh Nien Fan banquet last evening at the Grand Hyatt Taipei – its 53^rd such annual event. President Tsai Ing-wen delivered the keynote speech, during which she congratulated AmCham Taiwan on its 70th anniversary and promised to ensure that Taiwan continues to be an ideal location for foreign investment and relocation. She expressed her belief that Taiwan’s economic partnership with the U.S. could be strengthened further by the resumption of Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) talks, which would lay the foundation for negotiating a bilateral trade agreement (BTA).

Also speaking at the dinner was American Institute in Taiwan Director Brent Christensen, who thanked AmCham members for paying a critical role in the U.S.-Taiwan partnership. He said he believes strongly that the U.S. and Taiwan can work together to come up with innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges. Christensen’s speech was followed by pre-recorded video remarks from U.S. Senator Edward J. Markey, Counselor of the U.S. Department of State Derek Chollet, and Richard Steffens, U.S. Commerce Department Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Asia.

In his opening remarks, AmCham Chairperson CW Chin applauded President Tsai and her administration for their admirable leadership over the past year. He also acknowledged the role of both Taiwanese and American companies in contributing to Taiwan’s stellar economic performance during the pandemic. Chin expressed hope that Taiwan can continue to enjoy the international attention and prestige it has received and stressed that the Chamber would continue to push for greater economic cooperation with the U.S.

He bid farewell to interim AmCham President Leo Seewald, and also introduced the new AmCham Taiwan president, Andrew Wylegala, a 29-year veteran of the U.S. Commercial Foreign Service, who took up his position this week.

Senator Markey in his video noted that the connections made by AmCham Taiwan are a key reason why the U.S. is Taiwan’s second largest trading partner, and why Taiwan is one of the U.S.’ top-ten trading partners. Markey, who was among the four Senators and Congressional Representatives to introduce the bipartisan Taiwan Fellowship Act, a bill that would send U.S. government officials to Taiwan to learn, study, and work, stressed that the legislation could lead to further collaboration between the two partners.

Counselor Chollet, whose rank is equivalent to Under Secretary of State and who serves as a senior policy advisor to the Secretary of State, applauded Taiwan’s exemplary handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and thanked Taiwan for its generous donations of PPE to the U.S. He mentioned the U.S.-Taiwan Economic Prosperity Partnership Dialogue, launched last November, noting that it would help enhance cooperation across several key sectors. The State Department’s recently updated contact guidelines will also encourage broader connections between U.S. officials and their Taiwan counterparts, reflecting the deepening U.S.-Taiwan relationship.

Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary Steffens noted that a key priority for the Biden and Harris Administration is to strengthen and enhance U.S. economic and investment ties with Taiwan. The U.S. looks forward to working with Taiwan to tackle global economic challenges and appreciates the hard work of Taiwan’s semiconductor manufacturers to address the current chip shortage. Steffens said that the U.S. also hopes to bolster its university education partnership and public health cooperation with Taiwan.

Joining the approximately 550 AmCham members and guests at this year’s Hsieh Nien Fan were over 150 government officials. Besides the President and former Vice President Chen Chien-jen, high-ranking Taiwanese officials in attendance included Secretary-General of the Presidential Office David Lee, Secretary-General of the National Security Council Wellington Koo, Secretary-General of the Executive Yuan Lee Meng-yen, Secretary-General of the Legislative Yuan Lin Chih-chua, Minister without Portfolio John Deng, Minister without Portfolio and Minister of National Development Council Kung Ming-hsin, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu, Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung, Minister of Finance Su Jain-rong, Minister of Justice Tsai Ching-hsiang, Deputy Minister of the Interior Chen Tsung-yen, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Lin Minn-tsong, Chairman of the National Communications Commission Chen Yaw-shyang, and Chairperson of the Taiwan Council for U.S. Affairs Yang Jen-ni. For the first time in the Chamber’s history, representatives from Taiwan’s six municipalities attended this event. They included New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih, Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan, and deputy mayors from Taipei, Taichung, Tainan, and Kaohsiung.

The purpose of the Hsieh Nien Fan is to thank the Taiwan government, as well as local business leaders and scholars, for their constructive interaction with the foreign business community over the past year.

For more information, please contact:

Media contact:

Jack Lu
Manager of Government & Public Affairs
[email protected]
+886-2-2718-8226 Ext. 213

Gwenyth Wang-Reeves, PhD
Senior Director of Government & Public Affairs
[email protected]
+886-2-2718-8226 ext.314