ABSTRACT
No relationship is as essential to Taiwan’s survival than the one it has with the United States. The bilateral relationship between the two countries expanded to unprecedented levels since 2016, in large part due to the pragmatism espoused by the Tsai administration and a shifting geopolitical context amid growing skepticism of China. The Trump phenomenon, and to a more important extent trends within American institutions that were already pointing toward greater engagement with Taiwan, have contributed to a multifaceted strengthening of the relationship between Taipei and Washington, resulting in more frequent government-to-government exchanges at higher levels, the passage of U.S. laws that benefit Taiwan, Track 1.5 and Track 2 diplomacy between the two countries, a reinvigorated Global Cooperation Training Framework, as well as military assistance and major arms sales amid a more muscular U.S. rebalance to the Indo Pacific.
