In December 1978, the United States government announced it had established full diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China. This decision severed ties with the Republic of China and left many in Taiwan feeling betrayed by a country they considered an ally.

Robert Parker, then president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei (now AmCham Taiwan), was a key player in the events that followed. Invited to testify to Congress in February 1979, Parker urged the US to strengthen the draft legislation which would govern future US-Taiwan relations. 

In his testimony, Parker presented practical solutions to the legal and business issues that stemmed from the change in relations. Many of his recommendations were included in the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), which was enacted by Congress in April 1979 and still governs the US-Taiwan relationship.

Widely regarded as the US’s ‘underground Ambassador’ to Taiwan, in May 2000 Parker was awarded the Order of the Brilliant Star - Taiwan’s highest national honor - by the then President Lee Teng Hui.

During a recent visit to Taiwan, which he considers his “second home”, Robert Parker spoke to CommonWealth Magazine about his role in the creation of the Taiwan Relations Act, and why he feels the US-Taiwan relationship is “stronger than ever.” 

CommonWealth: Your testimony to Congress was key to the development of the Taiwan Relations Act. What was the situation like at the time?

Parker: The announcement of the recognition of the PRC came in December 1978. It was the culmination of a process that began in 1971, so it wasn't a shock that the change in relations happened. The shock was how it happened - without any advance notice that it was about to occur. 

The White House was occupied by Jimmy Carter, who had set up a deadline for himself in terms of achieving so-called normalization of relations with China by the end of 1978. Only five people in the US government actually knew that the change in relations was about to happen. That was really significant, not only because we in Taiwan didn't know, but also because the US Congress didn't know. 

A couple of months before the recognition announcement, the US Senate had passed a resolution saying that no action should be taken with respect to the mutual defense treaty between the United States and the ROC without prior consultation with the Congress. When Carter ignored that, he really antagonized and insulted Congress, and they were in the mood to teach him a lesson. 

This meant that when we offered our suggestions for what became the Taiwan Relations Act, Congress was very receptive. The atmosphere in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing room where we testified was electric. I had just got off the plane from Taipei 24 hours before, and hadn't had an opportunity to get a sense of how people were viewing the issue, but I felt hopeful that they were going to be receptive.

It wasn't until the hearings actually got underway that I could read the expressions and the body language of the senators sitting in front of me. I could tell they were very favorably inclined towards what I wanted to say.

I went away feeling optimistic, but with no certainty. On the way back to Taipei, I stopped in my little hometown in Texas. At the grocery store, the clerk noticed my Taiwanese driver’s license, and said “Didn't we just break off relations with Taiwan? But they're a friend of ours. That's no way to treat a friend.”

That moment, I knew we were going to win. Because if ordinary people felt that way, that's what congressmen and senators would be hearing from their constituents. And of course, we won. The TRA ended up passing overwhelmingly in the Congress. President Carter wasn't happy, but it was so big it was veto proof.

From that day, Congress has been strongly pro-Taiwan.

CommonWealth: As a witness to the dramatic change in US-Taiwan relations in 1979, how would you compare the atmosphere in Washington at that time with the atmosphere in Washington today?

Parker: I think it's important to understand the environment that existed back in 1978 - 1979 and the one that exists today. There are parallels, and there are also important differences. 

From a structural standpoint, I think there's a really fundamental difference between 1979 and now. In 1978 - 1979, there was a president and an administration that was concentrating on the China opportunity and normalizing relations with China. But on the other hand, there was a Congress that was very sympathetic toward Taiwan.

I would say that support is stronger than ever today. In the almost 44 years since the passage of the Taiwan Relations Act, I have not seen stronger support for Taiwan from both the administration and Congress. 

With regards to President Biden, his history on the Taiwan issue goes way back. When I testified before Congress, the senator sitting right across from me was a young guy named Joe Biden. He has a deep understanding of the Taiwan issue, and the US relationship with Taiwan. That's significant. 

The strong support from Congress reflects the overall relationship between the United States, Taiwan and China. One of the constants we see in American foreign policy is a favorable attitude towards Taiwan.

The driving force behind this favorable attitude has changed very gradually, from the era where anti-communism was the primary reason, to now, when admiration for the democracy, freedom and the free market of Taiwan is the driving force. 

Taiwan has made great progress in terms of the growth of its economy, and the high tech economy worldwide depends on the microchips and other products that come from Taiwan. This has been accompanied by the flowering of Taiwan's democracy. All of those things have strengthened the relationship, both economically and politically, between Taiwan and the United States. 

At the same time, the growth of the economy and of military power in China has created greater friction between the United States and China. So there’s been a shift in that trilateral relationship, and it's favorable to Taiwan.

Support for Taiwan is at a high point right now, but one of my concerns is that some members of Congress, particularly on the right side of the House of Representatives, are so enthusiastic in their desire to boost American commitment towards Taiwan that there's a risk of provocation that is not in Taiwan's interest. Part of intelligently protecting Taiwan while managing the trilateral relationship is making American commitment to Taiwan as credible as possible, while still leaving space for diplomacy and compromise. Because ultimately, that's in Taiwan's best interest.

CommonWealth: A lot of Taiwanese people were taken by surprise and felt somewhat betrayed when the US switched diplomatic recognition from the ROC to the PRC. Some remain skeptical of US commitment to Taiwan, and worry that Taiwan’s interests will be sacrificed again if the US deems it necessary. Do you think they’re right to be skeptical?

Parker: In international relations, all countries act in their own interest. We can never expect a country to act against its self interest. But when the interests converge as well as they do today between Taiwan and the United States, I think it gives us a strong basis for confidence. 

I don’t think that people's skepticism is valid.

It's important for Taiwan, in the interest of its own security, to understand the US’s self-interest when it comes to Taiwan, and eliminate any problems that may exist in the relationship. 

Right now, frankly, there are a lot of problems. One sector that stands out is agriculture. We have this issue over the importation of American pork, which has been an irritant for too long. That's an issue that Taiwan really should have solved by now. 

Robert Parker (Source: Ming-Tang Huang)

CommonWealth: As a longtime friend of Taiwan, what do you think Taiwan can do at this moment to strengthen US-Taiwan relations?

Parker: There are things that can be done to strengthen the US-Taiwan relationship, such as entering into a free trade agreement. But from the US perspective, the reason that hasn't happened yet, is that in the agricultural states there's a real concern over the fact that Taiwan has imposed a protectionist policy on their exports, particularly in the area of pork.

These agricultural states have a lot of political power in the US, and although they tend to be very supportive of Taiwan in general, like all politicians, they're responsive to their constituents. 

By understanding American self-interest in the relationship, Taiwan can strengthen the support it receives from these agricultural states by eliminating the issue that's holding them back from starting negotiations for a free trade agreement. Resolving this issue of pork imports is exactly the kind of thing that can be done to strengthen the relationship between the United States and Taiwan.

Simply put, Taiwan should seek to maximize areas of mutual interest and minimize remaining obstacles, such as protectionism in certain agricultural products.

CommonWealth: Apart from a free trade agreement, what other initiatives are there to strengthen the relationship between the US and Taiwan?

Parker: For people who really value the relationship and want to do whatever they can to strengthen it, there are a number of different things that can make a contribution. The 21st Century Trade Initiative is one. I'm involved as an adviser to another proposal, the Taiwan Fellowship Act. 

The idea behind it is that US government officials would be seconded to work within Taiwanese government agencies for a year or two. The knowledge they would gain, and the affection that goes with it, would be bound to strengthen the relationship when they go back and rise up within the American system of government. 

There are different avenues of strengthening the overall relationship, no one necessarily being more important than the others. But the real importance is to pursue as many different pathways as we can. They won't all succeed, but some will. 

These initiatives act as interim steps toward something even more important, like a free trade agreement, which would further strengthen economic ties, and mean it would be in the self interest of the United States to protect and preserve its strong relationship with Taiwan.

CommonWealth: At the recent Biden-Xi meeting in Bali, President Biden stressed the importance of responsibly managing US-China competition. In your view, how does the intensifying US-China competition and Biden's emphasis on managing the competition affect US policy towards Taiwan?

Parker: I think Biden’s exactly right. Under any circumstances, when you have two giant economic and military powers like the United States and China, there's bound to be a certain amount of friction. Your goal is to manage it, and that's exactly what Biden was talking about.

What can Taiwan do? Of course there's a defense dimension to the issue, and Taiwan needs to ensure that its ability to defend itself is more credible and more effective. There are some differences of opinion between the United States and Taiwan in terms of what Taiwan needs to be doing, militarily, to be in the best position to defend itself. 

I think the United States would like to see Taiwan strengthening its cyber defenses as much as possible. There are limits on what Taiwan can do, militarily, because ultimately, Taiwan's defense depends on the United States. 

CommonWealth: What’s the attitude towards Taiwan in the US now?

Parker: The most striking thing I’ve noticed on this visit to Taiwan is that I sense a higher level of concern about Taiwan and its future in the US than I do here. Almost every conversation about Taiwan that I have in the US these days is people asking me:  What do you think the future holds for Taiwan? Is Taiwan going to be attacked by China? 

Part of that is the overall situation that we're so familiar with. But the other factor that influences Americans very much right now is Putin and Russia's attack on Ukraine. They see a parallel and that scares them, especially as nobody wants war between the US and China. 

There's a much lower level of concern here in Taiwan.

I think Taiwan's confidence level is great, but we don't want to be complacent.

Taiwan has strong support in the United States, and should work to make it even stronger.

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Have you read?

• Pelosi’s Taiwan visit was a US-made crisis 
• Should Taiwan put its future in U.S. hands? 
• Video report: Is Taiwan’s Air Force ready to meet China’s threat? 

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