Taiwan-Israel cooperation on technology 'inevitable': Official

Taipei, Jan. 9 (CNA) Taiwan and Israel share many common interests and the two sides are likely to cooperate more closely in the future in the tech, medical and defense realms, Deputy Foreign Minister François Wu (吳志中) said in an interview posted Friday.

"Israel really respects our leadership position in the semiconductor and AI sectors, and, in fact, cooperation between us in the future is inevitable," Wu said.

He pointed to the major increase in delegations from Israel visiting Taiwan recently compared to the past as a sign of the growing potential for the two sides working together in the technology sector, which Wu said is already happening, in some cases indirectly.

Wu said, for example, that the U.S. Patriot missiles deployed by Israel to intercept Iran's missiles contain a great number of chips and components made in Taiwan, which have saved Israeli lives.

Also, as Taiwan accounts for 60-70 percent of global semiconductor production, 95 percent of the world's high-end semiconductors, and 100 percent of AI-related chips, advanced defense companies and vendors of basic consumer goods inevitably have to work with Taiwan, Wu said.

In terms of closer technology ties with Israel, that interest could be extended to the medical sector because of the many chips needed to operate highly advanced medical devices, Wu said.

"I think Israel has recognized more quickly [than others] the security and health benefits that cooperating with Taiwan can bring," he said.

The interviewer mentioned but did not ask about and Wu did not offer comment on a report by Reuters in December that Wu made a recent "unpublicized" visit to Israel "at a time when Taiwan is looking to the country for defense cooperation."

There was speculation that Taiwan is interested in Israel's Iron Dome system to help with a "T-Dome" system proposed by President Lai Ching-te (賴清德).

But Wu said in the interview that cooperation with Taiwan required "courage" as exchanges could make China unhappy and risk negative reactions from China.

He said the courage of the Jewish people is well-known, and that has enabled Taiwan and Israel to develop many possibilities in a wide variety of fields, he said.

One other area where Taiwan and Israel share interests is on Somaliland, Wu said.

At the end of December, Israel formally recognized Somaliland as a sovereign nation to the consternation of many other countries around the world, which see Somaliland as part of the territory of Somalia.

Taiwan, however, has developed ties with Somaliland, opening a representative office in Hargeisa, Somaliland's capital, in 2020, and it welcomed Israel's decision.

Wu said in the interview that he was dispatched to Somaliland as a special envoy of President Lai in December 2024 and during the trip he exchanged views with representatives from the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom as these countries have shared values and interests.

He said Taiwan will continue to deepen cooperation with Somaliland.