In a recent survey by the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Taiwan has revealed that the Chinese military drills around the island have not made any significant impact but have highlighted the concerns.
China, which claims Taiwan as its territory, has been carrying the military drill around the island nation ever since US House House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taipei this month.
However, only 126 of its 529 members responded to the survey conducted between August 8 to August 17, where 77 per cent said that they had experienced a limited negative impact on their business. While 17 per cent of members said that they had experienced disruption, a third of which reported increased shipping or insurance costs or supply chain delays, according to AmCham Taiwan said in a press release.
Also, nearly half of the 17 per cent said the disruption stemmed from changes in policies or other manifestations of concern from their offshore headquarters, it said.
Looking ahead, 46 per cent of the companies surveyed expected that the increased military activity during 2022-2023 would affect their operations, while the remainder were either unsure or did not anticipate being affected.
"When asked about the specific "spectrum of threats" often cited in media reports, companies ranked the following as their key concerns: 1) general tension, including disinformation and psychological campaigns targeting Taiwan; 2) constraints or barriers on Taiwan's periphery; and 3) sanctions, travel bans, boycotts, and embargoes against Taiwan products and people," according to the statement.
AmCham Taiwan President Andrew Wylegala noted, "Our Chamber has been calling for an ambitious agenda to accelerate economic cooperation with Taiwan through the 21st Century Trade Initiative, a double taxation avoidance agreement, and, eventually, via a bilateral trade agreement (BTA). Developments in recent weeks underscore the importance of supporting Taiwan's resilience through stepped-up economic collaboration and integration and the crucial fact that Taiwan's economic relationship with the United States is also a security issue. In addition, we believe the need to return Taiwan's entry rules for foreign visitors to their pre-COVID status has become essential."
The survey was conducted in the wake of Pelosi's visit to Taipei and the Chinese military exercises that followed.
Notably, last week, a new delegation of US lawmakers visited Taiwan, less than two weeks after Pelosi's visit to the self-ruled island angered China and set off large-scale military drills in the Taiwan Strait.
In response to this visit, China's military conducted combat alert patrols and military drills in the waters and airspace around Taiwan. On Tuesday, China staged military exercises in five areas of the South China Sea off the coast of the southeastern Guangdong province. Several zones of the Yellow Sea are also involved in the ongoing drills on August 17-19.
China claims full sovereignty over Taiwan despite the separate two sides being governed separately for more than seven decades. Taipei continues to counter the Chinese aggression by increasing strategic ties with democracies including the US.
( With inputs from ANI )
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