As Ireland prepares to assume the EU Presidency in 2026, its cautious approach to Taiwan continues to draw attention. Why does Ireland remain an outlier among EU member states in its engagement with Taipei, and how much is that caution driven by concerns about Ireland–China relations?
In this episode, we speak with John McGuinness, Leas-Cheann Comhairle, Fianna Fáil TD for Carlow–Kilkenny, and Chairman of the Ireland–Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Association, about his recent visit to Taiwan and meeting with President William Lai. We discuss opportunities for cooperation under Ireland’s National Semiconductor Strategy, potential trade growth in the semiconductor industry, agri-food exports, and technology sectors — and whether Ireland is missing key trade opportunities with Taiwan. We also explore how China’s influence and EU foreign policy dynamics are shaping Ireland’s diplomatic balancing act between Beijing and Taipei.
Date of Recording: November 7th, 2025
Thumbnail picture courtesy of the Office of the President, Republic of China, Taiwan.
#Ireland, #Taiwan, #China, #EU, #ForeignPolicy, #Trade, #Semiconductors
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As Ireland prepares to assume the EU Presidency in 2026, its cautious approach to Taiwan continues to draw attention. Why does Ireland remain an outlier among EU member states in its engagement with Taipei, and how much is that caution driven by concerns about Ireland–China relations?
In this episode, we speak with John McGuinness, Leas-Cheann Comhairle, Fianna Fáil TD for Carlow–Kilkenny, and Chairman of the Ireland–Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Association, about his recent visit to Taiwan and meeting with President William Lai. We discuss opportunities for cooperation under Ireland’s National Semiconductor Strategy, potential trade growth in the semiconductor industry, agri-food exports, and technology sectors — and whether Ireland is missing key trade opportunities with Taiwan. We also explore how China’s influence and EU foreign policy dynamics are shaping Ireland’s diplomatic balancing act between Beijing and Taipei.
Date of Recording: November 7th, 2025
Thumbnail picture courtesy of the Office of the President, Republic of China, Taiwan.
#Ireland, #Taiwan, #China, #EU, #ForeignPolicy, #Trade, #Semiconductors
Sovereignty and Stalemate - President Lai's First Year
Perspectives with Neilo
48 minutes 1 second
5 months ago
Sovereignty and Stalemate - President Lai's First Year
These are challenging times for many world leaders, and no less so for the democratically elected leader of Taiwan, Lai Ching-te (賴清德). Lai Ching-te or William Lai was inaugurated as the President of Taiwan on May 20th, 2024. He succeeded Tsai Ing-wen and his election to the presidential office marks the first time for his party, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)(民主進步黨) to hold this office for three consecutive terms.
While the DPP won the presidential vote, they failed to maintain a majority in the Legislative Yuan or parliament. As a result, the parliament has been controlled by the Chinese Nationalist Party (中國國民黨) or Kuomintang (KMT) and their smaller ally the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) (台灣民眾黨) who have sought to block Lai’s agenda, freeze or cut budgets including defense programs and interfere with operations of the country’s top court.
While the KMT insist that they are seeking to strengthen and protect Taiwan’s democracy, the general public would not appear to agree and a mass recall effort is well underway which could unseat up to 20 KMT lawmakers and change the balance of power for Lai’s administration. This is a topic we will deal with in more detail in upcoming episodes.
In the area of cross strait relations, President Lai has adopted a stronger rhetoric that characterises Taiwan as a de facto sovereign state, and has moved away from the more cautious tone of his predecessor. In a speech on March 13th, 2025, President Lai publicly characterized China as a "foreign hostile force" trying to "annex Taiwan and stamp out the Republic of China," a phrasing unprecedented for a Taiwanese president.
In response Beijing has repeatedly described Lai as a dangerous "separatist" and increased Military Drills and Grey-Zone Operations around Taiwan - including conducting large-scale "blockade-style military exercises" in response to his major speeches.
In this episode, I chat with William Yang, Senior Northeast Asia Analyst at the International Crisis Group — an independent, non-profit NGO dedicated to preventing and resolving deadly conflict. We dive into William’s recent article on President Lai’s first year in office, and examine how his administration has responded to mounting pressure from China. We also look at Taiwan public opinion and the challenges President Lai faces in navigating political tensions with the opposition KMT and TPP.
#Taiwan #TaiwanPolitics #Geopolitics #InternationalRelations #LaiChingTe #WilliamLai #TaiwanPresident #DemocraticProgressiveParty #DPP #TaiwanSovereignty #CrossStraitRelations #ChinaTaiwan #TaiwanSovereignty #ChinaMilitaryDrills #Kuomintang #KMT #TaiwanPeoplesParty #TaiwanPolitics2025 #TaiwanRecall #TaiwanElections #TaiwanProtests
#PodcastEpisode #PoliticalPodcast #AsiaPodcast #CurrentAffairsPodcast #InternationalCrisisGroup
Perspectives with Neilo
As Ireland prepares to assume the EU Presidency in 2026, its cautious approach to Taiwan continues to draw attention. Why does Ireland remain an outlier among EU member states in its engagement with Taipei, and how much is that caution driven by concerns about Ireland–China relations?
In this episode, we speak with John McGuinness, Leas-Cheann Comhairle, Fianna Fáil TD for Carlow–Kilkenny, and Chairman of the Ireland–Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Association, about his recent visit to Taiwan and meeting with President William Lai. We discuss opportunities for cooperation under Ireland’s National Semiconductor Strategy, potential trade growth in the semiconductor industry, agri-food exports, and technology sectors — and whether Ireland is missing key trade opportunities with Taiwan. We also explore how China’s influence and EU foreign policy dynamics are shaping Ireland’s diplomatic balancing act between Beijing and Taipei.
Date of Recording: November 7th, 2025
Thumbnail picture courtesy of the Office of the President, Republic of China, Taiwan.
#Ireland, #Taiwan, #China, #EU, #ForeignPolicy, #Trade, #Semiconductors
