25°4′46.82″N121°35′57.08″E / 25.0796722°N 121.5991889°E /25.0796722; 121.5991889
  American Institute in Taipei, with theflag of the United States flown out front | |
| Founded | Washington, D.C. (January 16, 1979 (1979-01-16)) |
|---|---|
| Founder | Harvey J. Feldman (U.S. diplomat)[1] |
| Type | U.S. Government-Sponsored Nonprofit, Private Corporation |
| Headquarters | Rosslyn, Arlington, Virginia |
| Location |
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Area served |  Taiwan |
| Services | De facto embassy functions |
Chairperson | Vacant |
Director | Raymond F. Greene[2][3] |
| Subsidiaries | Kaohsiung Branch Office of the American Institute in Taiwan |
| Website | www |
| Under authorization by theTaiwan Relations Act | |
TheAmerican Institute in Taiwan[4] (AIT;Chinese:美國在台協會;pinyin:Měiguó Zài Tái Xiéhuì) is thede facto embassy of the United States of America inTaiwan. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of thefederal government of the United States in Taiwan withCongressional oversight.[5] The AIT was officially created as a U.S. government-sponsored nonprofit,private corporation established under the auspices of the U.S. government to serve its interests in Taiwan.
Primarily staffed by employees of theUnited States Department of State and local workers, the AIT provides consular services normally offered byUnited States diplomatic missions, with the Great Seal of the United States hung at the main office in Taipei. The establishment ofdiplomatic relations with thePeople's Republic of China (PRC) in 1979 required the United States to develop its own "One China policy" and subsequently to terminate official diplomatic relations with the Republic of China (Taiwan). The AIT now serves to assist and protect U.S.interests in Taiwan in a quasiofficial manner,[6] and also processes U.S. visas and provides consular services to U.S. expatriates. Following the swift passage of the 2018Taiwan Travel Act by the United States, it now serves as a high-level representative bureau on behalf of United States in Taiwan.[7] It receives full protection from theUnited States Marine Corps as do U.S. embassies.[8][9][10]
AIT is a nonprofit corporation established pursuant to theTaiwan Relations Act to manage America's unofficial relationship with Taiwan; it was incorporated in theDistrict of Columbia on 16 January 1979[11] after the U.S. established fulldiplomatic relations with the PRC on January 1, 1979. This model, with an alternative form of American representative office established in Taiwan after the diplomatic relations were severed, was based on the AIT'sJapanese counterpart stationed in Taipei since 1972,[12]: 52 and was therefore referred to as theJapanese Model (日本モデル,Nihon-moderu).[13]: 140
Following the authorization of theTaiwan Relations Act, theDepartment of State, through a semiofficial contract with AIT, provides guidance and "funds a large part of AIT's operations." Like other U.S. missions abroad, AIT is staffed by employees of the Department of State and other agencies of the United States, as well as by locally hired staff. Prior to a 2002 amendment to the Foreign Service Act (Section 503 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended by the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003), United States government employees were required to resign from government service for their period of assignment to AIT. According to Section 12 (a) of the Taiwan Relations Act, agreements conducted by AIT have to be reported to Congress, just as other international agreements concluded by United States and governments with which it has diplomatic relations. Thus, while relations between the U.S. and Taiwan through AIT are conducted on an informal basis, the U.S. government still treats the relationship within the same confines as with other states with formal diplomatic relations.[14][15]
AIT has a small headquarters office inArlington County, Virginia with its largest office located inTaipei, Taiwan. The organization also has abranch office in Taiwan's strategic southern port city ofKaohsiung.[16] These three bureaus are referred to as AIT/Washington (AIT/W), AIT/Taipei (AIT/T) and AIT/Kaohsiung (AIT/K), respectively.[17]
The AIT office complex at No. 100 Jinhu Road,Neihu District, Taipei, was inaugurated in 2019. From 1979 to 2019, AIT/Taipei was located in theDaan District, on the site where the U.S.Military Advisory Group had previously been headquartered.[18]
For the purposes of remuneration and benefits, directors of the AIT hold the same rank as ambassador and, in Taiwan, are accorded diplomatic privileges in their capacity as directors.
Its counterpart in the United States is theTaipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office.
In May 2024, Raymond Greene was announced as the incoming AIT director, effective summer 2024, succeedingSandra Oudkirk.[19][20] During Greene's first meeting with Taiwan PresidentLai Ching-te, he said the United States' longstanding policy on Taiwan is based on the US' "One China" policy. In a press release describing the meeting, Lai's office omitted the "one China" reference, and instead described Greene's remarks as having referenced "the longstanding U.S. policy."[21] Lai's office denied it intentionally omitted the reference to the one China policy, which was challenged by local Taiwanese media.[22]
A new $250 million compound for the American Institute in Taiwan was unveiled in June 2018, accompanied by a "low-key" U.S. delegation[23] and several mid-level diplomats.[citation needed] According to the AIT the new complex represents "the United States' brick-and-mortar commitment to Taiwan."[24]
In 2019 director Christensen buried atime capsule at the new AIT complex in Neihu. The time capsule is not to be unearthed for 50 years.[24]
Several protests have been staged outside the institute.
Protests were staged by Taiwanese outside the institute in response to then US PresidentBill Clinton's meeting withJiang Zemin in 1998.[25]
Three Taiwanese firms protested American institute's failure to pay fees owed for contracting work on the office's new premises in 2013, then under construction.[26]
In May, 2024, protestors gathered outside institute to protest the United States' participation in the destruction of Gaza and killing of its citizens.[27] Protestors said the United States was complicit ingenocide.
The Political Section, originally known as the General Affairs Section (GAS),[41][12]: 66 is led by a chief which is similar to a political counselor in other embassies.[13]: 2
SeeU.S. Commercial Service in Taiwan
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)陳總統水扁先生今天上午代表我國政府與人民頒贈美國在台協會理事主席薄瑞光（Raymond F. Burghardt）「大綬卿雲勳章」，以表彰他致力於促進台灣與美國之間友好關係所作的卓越貢獻。
Media related toAmerican Institute in Taiwan at Wikimedia CommonsEmbassies are the main entries, whileconsulates-general are shown as sub-entries for each country. A full list can be found atList of diplomatic missions of the United States. | |||
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‡ Missions which are located in countries or cities that may be considered a part of more than one continent 1 Consulates-General which function as an embassy (ie. consul reports to State Department, not the respective country's ambassador) 2 The American Institute in Taiwan is ostensibly a public, non-profit organization to promote US-Taiwanese relations, but through State Department staffing & assistance, functions as an informal US diplomatic mission. | |||
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1 No diplomatic relations with Taiwan, functions as an informal diplomatic mission. 2 Diplomatic relations with Taiwan, but functions as an informal diplomatic mission. | |
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