Taiwan made 'essential contributions' at Pax Silica summit: US official

Taipei, Dec. 17 (CNA) Taiwan "was there and made essential contributions" at President Donald Trump's Pax Silica summit on silicon supply chain security issues, a senior American official said Tuesday (U.S. time).

"Taiwan was at the table and was absolutely present in all of the sessions in which one would expect Taiwan to play an important role," United States Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg said during a virtual press briefing.

Pushing back against "misperceptions" that Taiwan was sidelined from the U.S.-led strategic initiative, Helberg said Taiwan participated in discussions on manufacturing and semiconductors.

An earlier press release published by the U.S. State Department on Dec. 11 did not include Taiwan on a list of participants and guest contributors slated to gather for the summit, which was held in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 12.

A fact sheet on Pax Silica's webpage, however, named Taiwan as having made "guest contributions" alongside the European Union, Canada and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

In response to a question from a TaiwanPlus reporter, Helberg confirmed in the press briefing that Taiwan accepted a U.S. invitation to attend and "contributed a great deal to the meeting."

Helberg explained, however, that Washington chose not to duplicate talks already underway with Taipei through the U.S.-Taiwan Economic Prosperity Partnership Dialogue, citing Taiwan's "invaluable expertise" and its "essential" role in global supply chains.

Helberg also said planners were "expecting to roll out several new members of the Pax Silica Declaration" in the first quarter of 2026.

"Give us a little bit of room to let sensitive conversations unfold on a bilateral basis," he told the Taiwan-based reporter, who had asked if there was a pathway for Taiwan to be brought in as a full participant.

According to a State Department fact sheet, Pax Silica is aimed at building a "secure, prosperous, and innovation driven silicon supply chain -- from critical minerals and energy inputs to advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, AI infrastructure, and logistics."

The inaugural Pax Silica summit was convened by Helberg on Dec. 12 and brought together representatives from Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and Australia.

It is framed as a "positive-sum partnership" rather than an effort to isolate other countries by the State Department in its fact sheet, though Washington has previously expressed concern over China's technological advances and dominance in rare earth supply chains as a key driver of the initiative.