Taiwan Lecture Series – Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy+ and EU Ties amid Trump Administration 2.0
To expand its presence in international space, Taiwan has focused on advancing its role in the Indo-Pacific region. With the continuation of former President Tsai Ing-wen’s policy, President Lai Ching-te aims to further develop the New Southbound Policy (NSP) into New Southbound Policy+ (NSP+). This policy marks Taiwan’s aim to decouple from China, on which it currently relies for most of its exports and imports amid rising tensions in the Taiwan Strait, marked by repeated Chinese military exercises near Taiwanese shores in 2024. With the inauguration of US President Trump and his ‘America First’ policies, Taiwan may have to rely on a larger variety of foreign partners to diversify its export destinations and strengthen collaboration on innovation, technology, regional security.
In 2024, the EU signed a joint motion supporting Taiwan, condemned China’s misinterpretation of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758, China’s grey zone military actions, and opened for a future investment agreement. This indicates further rapprochement between Taiwan and the European community as the EU continues its de-risking efforts and strengthens its role in the Indo-Pacific.
Amid these developments, Taiwan and Europe’s role and policy in the Indo-Pacific region are pivotal to discuss. What are Taiwan and Europe’s policies and strategies in the Indo-Pacific region? What does President Lai aim to achieve with his NSP+? How does Europe see the Taiwan-Europe relations under the Trump administration? Join the webinar to explore Taiwanese and European perspectives on these issues with us!
Speakers:
Dr. Jing Bo-jiun is a Senior Research Fellow at the Oxford Taiwan Studies Programme within the Oxford School of Global and Area Studies (OSGA). He is also an Associated Research Fellow at ISDP. His research and publications primarily focus on Taiwan-Southeast Asia relations, Taiwan’s cyber security strategy, and the international relations of the Indo-Pacific region. Dr. Jing is the author of the monograph titled Taiwan and Southeast Asia: Opportunities and Constraints of Continued Engagement (University of Maryland School of Law, 2016). He holds a Ph.D. in International Political Economy from King’s College London, an M.A. in International Relations and International Economics from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), and a B.A. in Political Science and Economics from National Taiwan University.
Dr. Simona Grano is currently Head of the Research Area China-Taiwan Relations and Senior Lecturer at the University of Zurich, with a focus on Chinese and Taiwanese studies. Dr. Grano has held research positions and taught China Studies and Taiwan Studies at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice in Italy, at the University of Zurich in Switzerland and at National Cheng’chi University in Taiwan. She is a research fellow of the European Research Center on Contemporary Taiwan (ERCCT) in Tübingen, Germany, a research associate of SOAS, London and Senior Fellow on Taiwan at the Center for China Analysis in New York.
Simona is the author of ‘Environmental Governance in Taiwan: A New Generation of Activists and Stakeholders’, published in 2015 by Routledge. Her articles have appeared in the Journal of Civil Society, Journal of Current Chinese Affairs, China Information, Asiatische Studien, Taiwan in Comparative Perspective, Orizzonte Cina and International Journal of Taiwan Studies.
Her latest co-edited volume: ‘China-US Competition: Impact on Small and Middle Powers’ Strategic Choices’, was published by Palgrave Macmillan in January 2023. She regularly contributes to Swiss and global media through articles, commentaries and interviews. With several colleagues, she is the author of a China-Strategy guide, produced for the Italian Senate in 2020: Osservatorio di Politica Internazionale
Moderator: Yi-Chieh Chen, Junior Research Fellow at the Stockholm Taiwan Center