Why a Taiwan Invasion Would Trigger Trillions in Global Losses | Amb. Alexander Yui

Why a Taiwan Invasion Would Trigger Trillions in Global Losses | Amb. Alexander Yui

From American Thought Leaders by The Epoch Times

May 2, 2026 · 43 min

About this episode

Ambassador Alexander Yui discusses the implications of a potential Taiwan invasion by China and its impact on the global economy.

An island nation only one-third the size of Virginia, Taiwan produces more than 90 percent of the world’s most advanced chips and more than 90 percent of the servers powering the AI revolution. And last year, Taiwan became the United States’ fourth-largest trading partner—after Mexico, Canada, and China. More than one-fifth of global maritime trade goes through the Taiwan Strait, according to a Center for Strategic and International Studies analysis, and any conflict over Taiwan would be devastating for the global economy—and likely far worse than the economic disruptions caused by the Iran War. Chinese leader Xi Jinping has told the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to be ready for a successful Taiwan invasion by 2027, the PLA’s 100th anniversary. In this episode, I sit down with Taiwan’s representative to the United States, Ambassador Alexander Yui, to understand why Taiwan matters and what’s at stake as the Chinese Communist Party has ramped up its campaign to isolate, intimidate, and encircle Taiwan in recent years. Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s recent visit to Eswatini—Taiwan’s only African ally—had to be abruptly postponed when Seychelles, Madagascar, and Mauritius…

People in this episode

Guest: Alexander Yui

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Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: People’s Liberation Army, Center for Strategic and International Studies

Places: Taiwan, United States, Eswatini, China, South China Sea, Virginia, Seychelles, Madagascar, Mauritius

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