The mission of Taiwan’s Economic and Cultural Office in Guam (TECO) is to "facilitate trade cooperation, and bilateral exchanges, between Taiwan and the Western Pacific Region." The office has been around since 1994 but closed in 2017 due to budget and personnel restrictions.
A few years later, Taiwan's strengthened partnership with the U.S., and the growing strategic importance of the Pacific region, prompted the island nation to re-establish this office again, in 2020.
KPRG's Naina Rao sat down with TECO’s newest director, to discuss his latest role, and how political developments involving Taiwan may impact the territory.
Naina Rao: This isn’t your first time in the Pacific. You’ve been to the Marshall Islands.
Chia-Ping Liu: Yeah, I’ve been to the Marshall Islands.
NR: Chia Ping Liu, or, as he likes to call himself, CP Liu, arrived in Guam in early January of this year. He’s one of Taiwan’s most senior diplomats, and the second one to assume the role of TECO’s Director General.
CPL: This is my third overseas posting. My previous posting was to South Korea and the Marshall Islands.
NR: He was the secretary to Taipei’s mission in Korea for about six years. And then became the director of Taiwan’s embassy in Majuro, in the Republic of Marshall Islands.
CPL: My arrival to the island to Guam, I feel like I was back to the Marshall Islands. The weather, the people are friendly and nice. Everything, almost everything the same as the Marshall Islands. And it’s my honor to be posted to Guam. Taiwan and Guam enjoy strong bilateral relations, especially in domains such as education, tourism, and medical cooperations.
As the new Director General of TECO in Guam, I am more than happy to continue to work with the government of Guam, and our Austronesian brothers and sisters to deepen Taiwan-Guam close partnerships. And I know just last year, our office co-hosted the Austronesian traditional skill workshop with the University of Guam.
And this year, we will once again work with the Guam Museum to host the Austronesian exhibition, where we will have indigenous artifacts from our Taiwan brothers and sisters.
NR: I want to switch gears a little bit. We saw Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party win the presidential elections for a historic third straight term. Should Guam expect any changes or additions following this victory?
CPL: The election of our president, and vice president, and also the legislators’ election, all went smoothly through a fair and free process. I don’t think there will be any change because the President elect, Ching Te Lai, he is with the same party as President Tsai Ing Wen. So, I don’t think there will be any change, after the election, between Taiwan and Guam.
NR: Your predecessor Paul Chen chronicled just some of the projects facilitated by TECO just in 2023, and it included the first and largest overseas private sector donation of $600,000 to the University of Guam. And then he made another $200,000 donation to the Red Cross to assist with recovery efforts after Typhoon Mawar.
Additionally, you made a visit to Taiwan Adventist Hospital just last month, and it highlighted the hospital's strategic goals in Guam, connecting medical resources on the island, Saipan and Micronesia.
Why is Taiwan securing such a relationship with Guam? ‘Cause, it’s not like Guam can turn on Taiwan. It’s a U.S. territory. But why are these efforts important?
CPL: The strategic location of Guam in the Western Pacific is crucial to the regional peace and stability. So, we are doing all this to strengthen or to enhance our relations. Taiwan’s relations with Guam.
NR: This re-establishment of TECO in Guam aimed to facilitate, like you mentioned, economic and trade cooperation and exchanges between Taiwan and the greater Western Pacific region. As well as deepening Taiwan's relations with its Pacific allies.
In 2020, the Solomon Islands and Kiribati switched to recognizing Beijing. Nauru is now the latest Pacific nation to join that train. How much of a setback is this causing for TECO’s mission and goal? Is it causing a setback?
CPL: I don’t think the Nauru incident won’t do any setback to the Taiwan-Guam relationship. We deeply regret that Nauru, under the inducement of the PRC and make the incorrect decision to switch recognition to China. And, because we know that Guam is the U.S. territory, and U.S.-Taiwan relationship is rock solid. So, I don't see any change between the relations between Taiwan and Guam.
NR: Are you worried at all?
CPL: The government of Nauru's decision is disappointing. And the PRC often makes promises in exchange for diplomatic relations that ultimately remain unfulfilled. So, from that we are not worried of our relations with the other allies.
NR: That is TECO’s newest director general C-P Liu, thank you so much for your time.
CPL: Thank you for the interview.