US federal staff to work in Taiwan

FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM: Federal workers could spend up to a year in Taiwanese government offices to build familiarity with and understanding of the nation

Some US federal employees would work in Taiwanese government offices for up to a year under a new scheme to tighten ties between Taipei and Washington, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said yesterday.

The US, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, but is its most important international backer and arms supplier — a persistent sore point in its relations with Beijing.

Under the new Taiwan Fellowship Program (TFP), US federal employees would spend up to one year in intensive Mandarin language training and studies.

The US flag, left, and the Republic of China flag are pictured in Taipei on Feb. 22, 2024.

Photo: I-hwa Cheng, Bloomberg

The program was authorized under the Taiwan Fellowship Act, which then-US president Joe Biden signed into law in December 2022, as part of the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023.

The AIT did not explain the nearly three-year delay in implementing the program.

“Upon completion of training, the fellows are expected to work, for up to one year, in Taiwan parliamentary offices, ministries, other agencies or offices, or organizations outside the public sector in Taiwan,” the AIT said in a statement.

The main objectives of the program are to expand and enhance the US-Taiwan partnership and to reinforce US officials’ expertise regarding Taiwan, it added, without saying how many people may take part each year.

The program would build a group of federal professionals with language skills, cultural knowledge and “lasting working relationships across Taiwan.”

The memorandum of understanding was signed by AIT Managing Director Ingrid Larson and Representative to the US Alexander Yui (俞大?) in Arlington, Virginia, the AIT said in a news release.

“TFP reflects strong bipartisan support for the US-Taiwan relationship and a shared commitment to the people-to-people ties at its core,” Larson said in the statement.

In 1994, the US Congress established a similar scheme for Japan, called the Mike Mansfield Fellowship.