Trump Says Taiwan "Stole" U.S. Chip Industry During Fox News Interview

President Donald Trump criticized Taiwan’s role in the global semiconductor industry during a Fox News interview, saying the island had “stolen our chip industry.”

 The sector has been long dominated by companies such as Intel in the United States and later by firms including TSMC. (Photo: TSMC)

The remarks came during an interview with Fox News anchor Bret Baier following Trump’s visit to Beijing, where he held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, according to a Mediaite report.

Baier asked Trump whether Taiwan should feel more secure following his discussions with Xi and whether he would approve a proposed U.S. arms sale to Taipei.

Trump responded by criticizing previous U.S. administrations for allowing semiconductor manufacturing to move overseas.

“With all of that being said, if you look at the history of Taiwan, Taiwan was developed because we had presidents that didn’t know what the hell they were doing,” Trump said, according to the interview.

He added that tariffs on imported chips might have prevented U.S. chip manufacturing from moving abroad.

Trump has previously argued that Taiwan benefited disproportionately from semiconductor manufacturing, a sector long dominated by companies such as Intel in the United States and later by firms including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC).