The Research Institute for Democracy, Society, and Emerging Technology (DSET), in collaboration with the Graduate School of East Asian Studies at Freie Universität Berlin, held a closed-door seminar in Berlin in December 2024 titled “Taiwan-EU Strategic Dialogue: Toward a Stronger Partnership on Critical Technology and Supply Chain Security.” The event invited over thirty senior policy researchers from prominent European think tanks, including the Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS), RAND Europe, the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP), and Alliance4Europe, to discuss ways to enhance cooperation between Taiwan and Europe on techno-geopolitics.
The seminar focused on four topics: economic security and export controls, democratic governance and disinformation policy, national security and Taiwan-EU cooperation on drone production, and climate resilience and sustainability. Taiwan’s Ambassador to Germany, H.E. Jhy-wey Shieh; NSTC Representative to Germany, Mr. Peng Shuangjun; and former European Parliament Member, Reinhard Bütikofer, were invited to deliver opening remarks.
In his speech, Ambassador Shieh highlighted the significant shift in Europe’s policy toward Taiwan in recent years. He pointed out that in July 2023, Germany officially replaced its “China Policy” with a “China Strategy,” emphasizing Taiwan’s strategic importance and warning that any escalation of military tensions across the Taiwan Strait would impact German and EU interests. He also referenced the European Union’s 2019 “EU-China Strategic Outlook,” which identifies China as a “partner, competitor, and systemic rival,” underlining the EU’s competitive relationship with China. Ambassador Shieh urged all nations to strengthen cooperation to safeguard peace and stability in Taiwan and the Indo-Pacific region.
Reinhard Bütikofer, former Member of the European Parliament and current co-chair of the “Deutsch-Taiwanische Dialogplattform” (Taiwan-Germany Civil Forum), emphasized the importance of reinforcing Europe’s security and defense cooperation in the Indo-Pacific. He argued that Europe should develop a “salami-slicing defense” strategy to respond to China’s gradual expansion of influence in Taiwan by making China pay a real price for its actions.
Mr. Peng from the NSTC noted that Taiwan’s ongoing cooperation with Germany under the Taiwan-Germany Scientific and Technological Cooperation Arrangement (STA) has made significant progress in fields such as semiconductors, lithium batteries, hydrogen energy, and artificial intelligence. He mentioned that with TSMC’s investment in Germany, the NSTC would continue to enhance Taiwan-Germany semiconductor cooperation.
DSET Director, Dr. Wen-ling Tu, mentioned that since its establishment in 2023, DSET has been expanding its “Track 1.5 diplomacy” by collaborating with leading think tanks in Japan, South Korea, and the United States. This seminar in Europe marked DSET’s first such event, bringing together over thirty senior researchers from various European think tanks to focus on Taiwan-Europe collaboration in technology geopolitics and explore future research and dialogue opportunities.
The seminar consisted of three separate sessions, each with extensive discussions. However, the contents remained confidential in accordance with the Chatham House Rule. Below is a summary of the presentations shared by DSET researchers.
Session 1 — Economic Security: Taiwan-Europe Semiconductor Cooperation
The session was chaired by DSET Director Wen-ling Tu and featured a presentation by DSET Executive Director and Economic Security Group Director , Dr. Jeremy Chih-Cheng Chang. MERICS Senior Analyst Antonia Hmaidi, DGAP Researcher Filip Medunic, and European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) Senior Policy Fellow Tobias Gehrke participated in the discussion.
Chang emphasized DSET’s “Silicon Shield 2.0” strategic proposal for Taiwan, stating that while Taiwan’s position in the semiconductor supply chain faces challenges due to global subsidies and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s (TSMC) investments in the U.S., Japan, and Europe, these investments further integrate Taiwan into global supply chains. He argued that this integration strengthens Taiwan’s position, enhances international cooperation, and creates a “Silicon Shield 2.0” that increases global resolve to safeguard Taiwan’s security.
Regarding cooperation with Europe, Chang pointed out that Taiwan and Europe’s major threat currently comes from Chinese subsidies for legacy semiconductors, which could disrupt global markets. He emphasized that Taiwan and Europe should strengthen collaboration, particularly in the automotive semiconductor sector, leveraging TSMC’s presence in Germany to establish a more robust semiconductor ecosystem in Europe, thus counteracting China’s excessive subsidies.
Session 2 — Democratic Governance and National Security: Countering Disinformation and Drone Supply Chain Cooperation
The second session focused on Taiwan-Europe collaboration in countering Chinese disinformation and building a non-Chinese drone supply chain. The session was chaired by DSET Deputy Director Lien Hsien-Ming and featured DSET’s Democratic Governance Group Director Dr. Kai-Shen Huang, National Security Group Director Jerrel Chun-Kuei La, Alliance4Europe Senior Researcher Saman Nazari, Jeanette Hofmann from the Politics of Digitalization Research Group at the Berlin Social Science Center, and Wolfgang Müller from the German Institute for Defense and Strategic Studies (GIDS).
Huang introduced DSET’s recent report, “Generative AI and Democracy,” highlighting Taiwan’s persistent vulnerability to foreign disinformation campaigns, as reported in the 2024 V-Dem Democracy Report. He explained how Taiwan’s experience in combating AI-enhanced disinformation could contribute to global discussions and lead efforts in shaping regulatory frameworks for information warfare. Huang also discussed DSET’s new collaboration with Alliance4Europe, joining the Counter Disinformation Network (CDN), which brings together over 130 civil society organizations, universities, news outlets, fact-checking groups, and independent experts in the fight against disinformation.
Lai presented DSET’s analysis on Taiwan’s drone industry and its potential collaboration with Europe. He highlighted Taiwan’s strengths in semiconductor technology and original design manufacturing (ODM), making Taiwan a competitive player in the global drone market. He emphasized that Taiwan must seek international collaborations, including with European nations, to reduce manufacturing costs, compete with low-priced Chinese drones, and position itself as a key supplier of drones for democratic nations.
Session 3 — Sustainability, Resilience, and Energy Security
In the third session, DSET’s Sustainability and Resilience Group Director, Dr. Tsaiying Lu, and Andrew Yeh, Executive Director of the China Strategic Risks Institute (CSRI) in the UK, jointly presented DSET and CSRI’s policy report, “A Brighter Future: Prospects for Europe-Taiwan Cooperation in Next-Generation Solar.” The report discussed how Taiwan and Europe could cooperate to advance third-generation solar technology, particularly perovskite solar cells (PSC), and reduce reliance on China. Loyle Campbell, Research Fellow at the Center for Climate and Foreign Policy, DGAP, Julia Christina Hess, Senior Researcher on Global Chip Dynamics, and Dr. Francesca Ghiretti, Research Director at RAND Corporation, also participated in the discussion.
Lu explained that the report’s purpose was to propose a strategy for Taiwan and Europe to jointly develop a resilient and independent solar photovoltaic supply chain, addressing the risks posed by China’s dominance in the solar panel market. Through interviews with industry leaders and secondary data analysis, the research identifies Taiwan’s strategic advantages compared to Japan, South Korea, and China, and how Taiwan could become an essential partner for Europe in the third-generation solar market. Moving forward, DSET aims to continue collaborating with European think tanks to explore how to strengthen energy security and reduce reliance on Chinese supply chains.
