Taipei: An American scholar has refuted President Donald Trump's assertion that Taiwan has "taken" America's chip industry, emphasizing that the United States and Taiwan function as strategic partners rather than competitors in the semiconductor sector. According to Focus Taiwan, Michael Cunningham, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center, clarified in an email that Taiwan did not seize America's chip business. He explained that U.S. companies continue to lead in semiconductor design while outsourcing manufacturing processes to Taiwanese firms.Cunningham stated, "It's a partnership that has served the U.S. and its semiconductor businesses very well," in response to Trump's repeated claims that Taiwan "stole" America's chip industry. Trump's remarks were made during a CNBC interview on July 2, in which he claimed Taiwan had "literally took 100 percent" of the semiconductor business and predicted that the U.S. would achieve "40 to 50 to 60 percent" of chip manufacturing by the end of his term in office.Cunnin gham highlighted that while Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and some suppliers are expanding operations in the U.S., they are not abandoning Taiwan. The U.S. projects represent new investments in addition to existing operations, and new fabrication plants are also being constructed in Taiwan to meet growing global demand.When questioned about Trump's focus on Taiwan, Cunningham attributed it to the president's ambition to reverse U.S. deindustrialization and lessen dependence on imported chips. However, he noted that concerns over reliance on Taiwan are shared across party lines, with both the Trump and Biden administrations pursuing strategies to boost domestic chip manufacturing.Cunningham also rebutted Trump's prediction regarding the significant shift in chip manufacturing to the U.S., stating, "Not a chance." He pointed out that Taiwan's well-established semiconductor ecosystem allows for cost-effective, high-quality, and large-scale chip production, a capability the U.S. has yet to mat ch.While U.S. chip production is expected to rise, Cunningham emphasized that Taiwan's decades of semiconductor expertise cannot be quickly duplicated, making a considerable reduction in U.S. reliance on Taiwan improbable in the near future. In a recent commentary, he argued that "America's chip future still runs through Taiwan," underscoring the importance of collaboration with Taiwanese firms to achieve U.S. industrial objectives.