The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States () is the representative office of Taiwan in the United States in the absence of formal diplomatic relations, functioning as a de facto embassy. Its counterpart in Taiwan is the American Institute in Taipei.
History PeriodNameChineseJan 1, 1912 — May 17, 1935Legation of the Republic of China in the United States of AmericaMay 17, 1935 — Dec 31, 1978Embassy of the Republic of China in the United States of AmericaMarch 1, 1979 — Oct 10, 1994Coordination Council for North American Affairs, Office in the United StatesOct 10, 1994 — presentTaipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States Prior to 1979, the Republic of China (with government on Taiwan since 1949) was represented in Washington, D.C. by its embassy, occupying the building now used by the Haitian embassy.James M. Goode (2003). "Capital Losses: A Cultural History of Washington's Destroyed Buildings". Smithsonian Books. p. 264. ISBN 1588341054. After the transfer of recognition to the People's Republic of China, the government of the Republic of China was no longer recognized by the United States, and therefore no longer entitled to use the former embassy, with its diplomatic mission replaced by a non-diplomatic-titled representative office. The mission serves as the office of the Coordination Council for North American Affairs (CCNAA) in Washington, D.C., established in March 1979 as the counterpart to the American Institute in Taiwan, after the United States established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China.Courage and fortitude, Taiwan Review, 1 May 1979For U.S. Quasi-Embassy in Taiwan, Silence is Golden, The Washington Post, 4 September 1980 The council was renamed Taiwan Council for U.S. Affairs in 2019.
In 1994, as a result of the Clinton Administration's Taiwan Policy Review, the name of the CCNAA office in Washington, D.C. (which functioned as an embassy) was changed to Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO).Su, Chi, Taiwan's Relations with Mainland China: A Tail Wagging Two Dogs (at Google Books), (Routledge, 2009), page 31. Similarly, the names of the twelve other CCNAA offices (which functioned as consulates) were changed to Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO)."1994 Taiwan Policy Review ." Formosan Association for Public Affairs. Retrieved 28 January 2009.
In September 2020, the US Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft met with Amb. James K.J. Lee, Director-General of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York, who was secretary-general in Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs until July, for lunch in New York City in what was the first meeting between a top Taiwan official and a United States ambassador to the United Nations. Craft said she and Lee discussed ways the US can help Taiwan become more engaged within the U.N.
List of Representatives
Representatives (CCNAA) James Shen (1 January 1979 – 9 May 1979) Konsin Shah, 1979–81 Cai Weipin, 1981–82 Fredrick Chien (19 November 1982 – 20 July 1988) Ting Mao-shih, 1988–94
Representatives Benjamin Lu, 1994–96 Jason Hu, 1996–97 Stephen S. F. Chen (1997–2000) Chen Chien-jen (30 June 2000 – 20 May 2004) David Lee (25 July 2004 – 10 April 2007) Joseph Wu (10 April 2007 – 26 July 2008) Jason Yuan (4 August 2008 – 27 September 2012) King Pu-tsung (27 September 2012 – 24 March 2014) Shen Lyu-shun (1 April 2014 – 5 June 2016)Tsao, Nadia, US demands replacement of Taiwan representative, Taipei Times, 10 January 2015. Stanley Kao (5 June 2016 – 24 July 2020) Hsiao Bi-khim (24 July 2020 – 30 November 2023) Alexander Yui (12 December 2023 – present)
Consular districts by missions
Mission Consular district Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States Washington, D.C., Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and Delaware Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Boston Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Miami Florida, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Bermuda, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos Islands and the Dominican Republic Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Atlanta Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina and South Carolina Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Chicago Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Houston Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Oklahoma Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Denver(relocated from TECO in Kansas City, Missouri since 17 April 2015) Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles Southern California, Arizona and New Mexico Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in San Francisco Northern California (north of Visalia), Nevada and Utah Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Seattle Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Alaska Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Honolulu Hawaii, American Samoa and Palmyra Atoll Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Guam(merged into consular jurisdiction of Embassy in Palau, from 31 August 2017 to 2020. Restored consular post in Guam since summer 2020.) Guam and the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI)
Representation in U.S. Congress Including: Law firm Alston & Bird with former Senator Bob Dole as registered lobbyist, with a $25,000 monthly retainer; two decades of representation by Dole as of 2016. He died in 2021. Richard A. Gephardt, former Congressman, a $25,000-a-month contract; 2016. Thomas A. Daschle, former Senator, a $25,000-a-month contract; since 2015.Davis, Julie Hirschfeld, and Eric Lipton, "Bob Dole Worked Behind the Scenes on Trump-Taiwan Call 点击查看本文中文版", The New York Times, 6 December 2016. Retrieved 2016-12-07.
See also List of diplomatic missions of Taiwan Diplomatic missions in the United States Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office Twin Oaks Estate
References
External links
Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States