Taiwan

A self-governing democracy of 23 million people that Beijing claims as a renegade province. Taiwan produces over 90% of the world's most advanced semiconductors — making it the intersection of the US-China rivalry's military and technological dimensions.

Taiwan (officially the Republic of China) has governed itself independently since 1949 when the Nationalist government retreated from mainland China. The US maintains unofficial relations and supplies defensive arms under the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979. TSMC — Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company — produces chips that power everything from iPhones to AI data centres, making Taiwan's security a global economic concern.