Taiwan cooperation key to Indo-Pacific stability: Ex-President Tsai

San Francisco, Oct. 7 (CNA) Former Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said Wednesday that deeper international cooperation with Taiwan will not only strengthen its security, but also boost stability in the Indo-Pacific and the resilience of other democracies.

Technology and economic resilience are increasingly tied to national security, Tsai said at Stanford DEFCON 2026, an annual conference held at Stanford University on technology and national security, according to a statement released by her office.

Maintaining peace in the Indo-Pacific, where military power, technology and economic security intersect, is one of the major challenges facing the world, the former president said in a speech titled "Building Security Together: Taiwan's Role in Global Stability."

She noted that Chinese military aircraft and ships, as well as coast guard vessels, operate regularly around Taiwan, while cyberattacks, cognitive warfare, information manipulation, and economic coercion have become almost a daily occurrence.

Taiwan's global role

Amid sustained pressure, Taiwan now has to do more than prepare for a major military contingency, while continuing to strengthen its ability to defend itself and preserve its freedom, Tsai said.

"The Taiwan Strait is one of the world's most important trade and energy routes, and Taiwan is deeply integrated into global technology and manufacturing networks," she said. "A serious disruption would be felt throughout the Indo-Pacific and beyond."

Tsai said international coverage still often portrays Taiwan as a security challenge that requires support from other countries, but "that is only a part of the picture." Taiwan is among a small number of democracies capable of adding manufacturing capacity to the challenge rather than simply consuming it, she said, citing the role of Taiwan's semiconductor industry in global technology supply chains.

Noting that the U.S. accounts for about three-quarters of the world's artificial intelligence (AI) computing capacity, Tsai said Taiwanese companies manufacture nearly all of the advanced accelerators used in those systems and around 90 percent of the AI servers built around them.

"The AI economy, therefore, depends heavily on what Taiwan builds, and our contribution extends well beyond semiconductors," she said.

Meanwhile, in the satellite industry, Taiwanese companies are major producers of radio-frequency chips and circuit boards used in communications and satellite systems, she noted.

These capabilities are increasingly relevant to security, as the line between civilian and defense technologies becomes less distinct, Tsai added.

Taiwan's position at the center of the first island chain, combined with its democratic system, technological capabilities and industrial strength, gives it a difficult-to-replace role, she said.

"A secure and resilient Taiwan contributes to a more stable Indo-Pacific, while its technological and industrial strengths reinforce trusted supply chains and reduce vulnerabilities far beyond the region," Tsai added.

"Deeper cooperation with Taiwan, therefore, strengthens not only Taiwan's own security, but also the stability of the Indo-Pacific and the resilience of the wider democratic community," she said.

Following her speech, Tsai took part in a fireside chat moderated by Stanford DEFCON Co-President Gordon Kim and attended by several Taiwanese students studying in the U.S.

Chang Chia-chi (張家綺), an MBA student, said Tsai's discussion of Taiwan's role in geopolitics and technology echoed the increasingly frequent discussions of Taiwan in her classes.

Chang said she hoped to draw on her experience in Taiwan and the U.S. to help more people understand her homeland.

Meanwhile, another student Lin Hsin-yu (林芯伃) said Tsai's discussion of Taiwan's key role in advanced chip supply resonated with her, particularly the facts about Taiwan's indispensable link in defense-related supply chain.

Tsai arrived in San Francisco on Monday for a week-long visit, her first to the U.S. since she completed her two four-year terms as president in May 2024.