American Institute In Taiwan
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The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT; ) is the ''de facto'' Embassy of the United States of America in
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
. The AIT institution is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the
federal government of the United States The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fede ...
in Taiwan with
Congressional oversight Congressional oversight is oversight by the United States Congress over the Executive Branch, including the numerous U.S. federal agencies. Congressional oversight includes the review, monitoring, and supervision of federal agencies, programs, a ...
. The AIT was officially created as a U.S. government-sponsored
non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
,
private corporation A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in the respective listed markets, but rather the company's stock is ...
established under the auspices of the U.S. government to serve its interests in Taiwan. Primarily staffed by employees of the
United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...
and local workers, the AIT provides consular services normally offered by United States diplomatic missions, with the Great Seal of the State Department hung at AIT's main office in Taipei. The establishment of
diplomatic relations Diplomacy comprises spoken or written communication by representatives of states (such as leaders and diplomats) intended to influence events in the international system.Ronald Peter Barston, ''Modern diplomacy'', Pearson Education, 2006, p. 1 ...
with the
People's Republic of China (PRC) China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
in 1979 required acknowledgment of the "
one-China policy The term One China may refer to one of the following: * The One China principle is the position held by the People's Republic of China (PRC) that there is only one sovereign state under the name China, with the PRC serving as the sole legit ...
" and subsequent termination of diplomatic relations with the Republic of China (Taiwan). The AIT now serves to assist and protect U.S.
interest In finance and economics, interest is payment from a borrower or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is distinct ...
s in Taiwan in a quasi-official manner, and also processes US visas and provides consular services to U.S. expatriates. Following the swift passage of the 2018
Taiwan Travel Act The Taiwan Travel Act (, ) is an Act of the United States Congress. Passed on February 28, 2018, it was signed into law by President Donald Trump on March 16, 2018. As a follow-up to the Taiwan Relations Act, the bill allows high-level official ...
by the United States, it now serves as a high-level representative bureau on behalf of United States in Taiwan. It receives full protection from the
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
as do all US embassies. American Institute in Taiwan Kaohsiung Branch Office is a division of the AIT institution located in southern Taiwan.


Overview

AIT is a non-profit corporation incorporated in the
District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
on 16 January 1979 after the US established full diplomatic relations with the PRC on January 1, 1979. This model, with an alternative form of American representative office established in Taiwan after the diplomatic relations were severed, was based on the AIT's Japanese counterpart stationed in Taipei since 1972, and was therefore referred to as the . Following the authorization of the
Taiwan Relations Act The Taiwan Relations Act (TRA; ; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: ''Thôi-van Kwan-hè-fap''; ) is an act of the United States Congress. Since the formal recognition of the People's Republic of China, the Act has defined the officially substantial but non-diplo ...
, the Department of State, through a semi-official contract with AIT, provides guidance and some funding in its operations. Like other U.S. missions abroad, AIT is staffed by employees of the Department of State and other agencies of the United States, as well as by locally hired staff. Prior to a 2002 amendment to the Foreign Service Act (Section 503 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended by the Department of State Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003), United States government employees were required to resign from government service for their period of assignment to AIT. According to Section 12 (a) of the Taiwan Relations Act, agreements conducted by AIT have to be reported to Congress, just as other international agreements concluded by United States and governments with which it has diplomatic relations. Thus, while relations between the US and Taiwan through AIT are conducted on an informal basis, the US government still treats the relationship within the same confines as with other states with formal diplomatic relations. AIT has a small headquarters office in
Arlington County, Virginia Arlington County is a County (United States), county in the Virginia, Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the Washington, D.C., District of Co ...
with its largest office located in
Taipei, Taiwan Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...
. The organization also has a
branch office A branch office is an outlet of a company or, more generally, an organization that – unlike a subsidiary – does not constitute a separate legal entity, while being physically separated from the organization's main office. Branching is particu ...
in Taiwan's strategic southern port city of
Kaohsiung Kaohsiung City (Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsi ...
. These three bureaus are referred to as AIT/Washington (AIT/W), AIT/Taipei (AIT/T) and AIT/Kaohsiung (AIT/K), respectively. The AIT office complex at No. 100 Jin Hu Road,
Neihu District Neihu District is a district of Taipei City, Taiwan. Neihu means "inner lake." The older name originates from the Ketagalan word ''Tayour'' (transliterated by the Dutch as ''Cattajo''), meaning woman's head ornament. Many mountainous roads and ...
, Taipei, was inaugurated in 2019. AIT/Taipei was previously located in the Daan District on the former site of the U.S. Military Advisory Group headquarters before 1979. For the purposes of remuneration and benefits, directors of the AIT hold the same rank as ambassador and, in Taiwan, are accorded diplomatic privileges in their capacity as directors. Its counterpart in the United States is the
Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO), also known as Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO), Taipei Representative Office (TRO) or Taipei Mission, is an alternative diplomatic institution serving as a ''de facto'' e ...
. From 1953 to 1979, the
United States Ambassador to the Republic of China The United States Ambassador to China is the chief United States, American United States Ambassador, diplomat to China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The United States has sent diplomatic representatives to China since 1844, when Caleb Cush ...
was based in Taipei.


New compound in Taipei

A new $250 million compound for the American Institute in Taiwan was unveiled in June 2018, accompanied by a "low-key" U.S. delegation and several mid-level diplomats. According to the AIT the new complex represents "the United State's brick-and-mortar commitment to Taiwan." In 2019 director Christensen buried a
time capsule A time capsule is a historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a deliberate method of communication with future people, and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians. The preservation of holy relics dates ba ...
at the new AIT complex in Neihu. The time capsule is not to be unearthed for 50 years.


Principal officers


List of directors

*
Charles T. Cross Charles Tenney "Chuck" Cross (May 4, 1922 – November 3, 2008) was an American career diplomat and ambassador who held many positions in American government around the world. He served as the United States Consulate General Hong Kong, U.S. Consul ...
1979 – 1981 * James R. Lilley 1981 – 1984 * Harry E. T. Thayer 1984 – 1986 * 1987 – 1989 *Thomas S. Brooks 1990 – 1993 *
B. Lynn Pascoe Burton Lynn Pascoe (born July 7, 1943) served as Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations at the UN Department of Political Affairs from 2007 to June 2012, where he oversaw the UN's diplomatic efforts to prevent and mitigate conflict around ...
1993 – 1996 * Darryl Norman Johnson 1996 – 1999 *
Raymond Burghardt Raymond Burghardt (born 1945) is an American diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to Vietnam from 2002 to 2004, Director (1999-2001) as well as Chairman of American Institute in Taiwan from 2006 to 2016. Biography Burghardt was b ...
1999 – 2001, received the
Order of Propitious Clouds The Order of Propitious Clouds () is a civilian order of the Republic of China (Taiwan). The center of the medal features a picture of clouds, as a token of auspiciousness. This order was instituted in 1941 and classified into nine ranks. As with ...
* Douglas H. Paal 2002 – 2006 * Stephen Young 2006 – 2009 * William A. Stanton 2009 – 2012 *
Christopher J. Marut Christopher J. Marut is an American diplomat who last served as Director of the American Institute in Taiwan, the ''de facto'' embassy of the United States in Taiwan, from 2012 to 2015. He also served as acting consul general of the Consulate Gen ...
2012 – 2015 * Kin W. Moy 2015 – 2018 * Brent Christensen 2018 – 2021 * Sandra Oudkirk 2021 – present


List of deputy directors

* William A. Brown 1979 *William Wayt Thomas Jr. 1979 – 1981 *Thomas S. Brooks 1981 – 1983 *Jerome C. Ogden 1983 – 1986 *Scott S. Hallford 1986 – 1991 *James A. Larocco 1991 – 1993 *Christopher J. LaFleur 1993 – 1997 *Lauren K. Moriarty 1997 – 1998 * Stephen Young 1998 – 2001 * Pamela J. H. Slutz 2001 – 2003 * David J. Keegan 2003 – 2006 * Robert S. Wang 2006 – 2009 * Eric H. Madison 2009 – 2012 *Brent Christensen 2012 – 2015 * Robert W. Forden 2015 – 2018 *Raymond F. Greene 2018 – 2021 *Jeremy A. Cornforth 2021 – present


List of political section chiefs

The Political Section, originally known as the General Affairs Section (GAS), is led by a chief which is similar to a political counselor in other embassies. ;Chiefs, General Affairs Section *Mark S. Pratt 1979 – 1981 *Stanley R. Ifshin 1981 – 1983 *David E. Reuther 1983 – 1985 *Joseph J. Borich 1985 – ? *Thomas V. Biddick 1989 – *Douglas G. Spelman * James F. Moriarty 1995 – 1998 *
Eunice Reddick Eunice Sharon Reddick (born 1951) is an American diplomat and is a former ambassador to Niger. She previously served as the U.S. ambassador to Gabon and São Tomé and Príncipe. Biography Reddick graduated from Hunter College High School in New ...
1997 – 2000 ;Chiefs, Political Section *
Joseph R. Donovan Jr. Joseph R. Donovan Jr. is a former American diplomat who previously served as United States Ambassador to Indonesia. Early life Joseph R. Donovan Jr. graduated from Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service. He earned a master's degree f ...
2000 – 2003 *Melvin T. L. Ang 2003 – 2004 *James L. Huskey 2004 – 2008 *David H. Rank 2008 – 2010 *Daniel Turnbull 2010 – 2013 *William Klein 2013 – 2016 *Christian M. Marchant 2016 – 2019 *Bradley S. Parker 2019 – present


List of commercial officers

*William D. McClure 1981 – 1986 *Raymond Sander 1987 – 1997 *William Brekke 1997 – 2000 *Terry Cooke 2000 – 2003 *Gregory Loose 2003 – 2006 *Gregory Wong 2006 – 2010 *Helen Hwang 2010– *Scott Pozil 2011 – 2013 *Amy Chang 2010 – 2013 *Robert Leach (Kaohsiung) 2000 – 2003 *Steve Green (Kaohsiung) 2009 – 2011 *Gregory Harris (Kaohsiung) 2011 – ''See'' ''AIT Commercial Section''


List of chairmen

*David Dean 1979 – 1986 *David N. Laux 1986 – 1990 *
Natale H. Bellocchi Natale Hans Bellocchi (July 5, 1926 – November 17, 2014) was an American industrial engineer from Little Falls, New York, a Korean War United States Army veteran, and United States diplomat. He served for years as a diplomatic courier and Foreig ...
1990 – 1995 *James C. Wood Jr. 1996 – 1997 * Richard C. Bush 1997 – 2002 * Therese Shaheen 2002 – 2004 * William A. Brown 2004 – 2006 (Acting) *
Raymond Burghardt Raymond Burghardt (born 1945) is an American diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to Vietnam from 2002 to 2004, Director (1999-2001) as well as Chairman of American Institute in Taiwan from 2006 to 2016. Biography Burghardt was b ...
2006 – October 2016 * James F. Moriarty October 2016 – present


See also

* De facto embassy *
Taiwan–United States relations The bilateral relationship between Taiwan and the United States of America are the subject of the Japan-U.S. relations during Japanese colonial rule and China-U.S.relations before the government of the Republic of China (ROC) led by the K ...
*
Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States () represents the interests of Taiwan in the United States in the absence of formal diplomatic relations, functioning as a ''de facto'' embassy. Its counterpart in Taiwa ...
, its counterpart *
Foreign relations of Taiwan The Republic of China (ROC), commonly known as Taiwan, has full diplomatic relations with 13 of the 193 United Nations member states and with the Holy See (Vatican City). In addition to these relations, the ROC also maintains unofficial re ...
*
Foreign relations of the United States The United States has formal diplomatic relations with most nations. This includes all UN member and observer states other than Bhutan, Iran, North Korea and Syria, and the UN observer State of Palestine, the last of which the U.S. does not rec ...
*
Foreign policy of the United States The officially stated goals of the foreign policy of the United States of America, including all the bureaus and offices in the United States Department of State, as mentioned in the ''Foreign Policy Agenda'' of the Department of State, are ...
*
Political status of Taiwan The controversy surrounding the political status of Taiwan or the Taiwan issue is a result of World War II, the second phase of the Chinese Civil War (1945–1949), and the Cold War. The basic issue hinges on who the islands of Taiwan, Peng ...


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:American Institute In Taiwan Taiwan–United States relations 1979 establishments in Washington, D.C. Representative Offices in Taipei
Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...
1979 establishments in Taiwan Diplomatic missions in Washington, D.C.