Taiwan's ex-envoy defends think tank ties after Trump accusation

Taiwan's former representative to the U.S., Kao Shuo-tsun, defended Taiwan's think tank engagement after President Trump accused Taiwan's mission of funding a liberal Washington think tank, calling the charge unfair and urging continued bipartisan outreach. Kao clarified Taiwan maintains balanced, nonpartisan ties with U.S. policy institutions and never interferes in U.S. internal affairs, noting Japan and South Korea were also named, making such engagement standard practice among allies. He argued Taiwan should strengthen think tank diplomacy to counter Beijing's narrative pressure on issues like U.N. Resolution 2758, using the Taiwan Relations Act to convey Taiwan's strategic value to diverse U.S. policy communities.