China’s military drills around Taiwan drive foreign firms to draw up exit plans for staff and assets
- Foreign companies in Taiwan are drawing up plans to evacuate people and assets following military drills by the People’s Liberation Army
- Firms are not expected to leave in the short-term, but the heightened tensions have forced them to reassess vulnerabilities, analysts say
Multinational businesses in Taiwan are laying plans to evacuate assets and personnel in case mainland China attacks the island.
The PLA began military exercises encircling Taiwan on Thursday after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi defied Beijing’s repeated warnings with a whirlwind visit to the self-ruled island last week.
Beijing sees Taiwan as a renegade province that must be reunited with the mainland, by force if necessary.
Countries that have diplomatic ties with Beijing, including the United States, acknowledge the existence of the one-China principle, which states Taiwan is part of China. But they may not explicitly agree with it. Washington does not take a position on the status of Taiwan, though it opposes any attempt to take the island by force.
“The companies are creating better structures to monitor and analyse geostrategic shifts while writing up scenarios for staff and shifting supply chains if Taiwan is blockaded,” said Rupert Hammond-Chambers, president of the US-Taiwan Business Council.