Today we started with a visit to the American Institute in Taiwan, where we got to hear from Christopher Koschil, an American diplomat at this de facto embassy. The conversations gave me a whole new perspective on how diplomacy works. Christopher explained what they do a the AIT—basically everything an embassy would do, since the U.S. doesn’t officially recognize Taiwan as a county. He explained the history of U.S.–Taiwan relations and how it’s evolved over time. Taiwan is a major trading partner for the U.S., especially when it comes to semiconductors. Christopher explained that America, amongst many other countries, are far behind in tech when compared to Taiwan. Thus, they’re essential to our progress in innovation. From what I gathered, Taiwan is equally, if not more, invested in their relationship to America. At the recent SelectUSA Investment Summit, there were more Taiwanese investors present than Indian. Given that India’s population is over five times that of Taiwan, that’s impressive. I think what struck me most was how complex everything is—like how the U.S. balances its relationship with Taiwan while still officially recognizing China. It made me realize how much diplomacy is about navigating gray areas and building relationships quietly but intentionally.
The second place we visited was Supply Chain Management (SCM) Solutions. There we heard from Kara Atchinson and William Young, CEO and COO of SCM Solutions, respectively.