Alaska's governor flew to Taiwan to sell LNG. China's not happy.

Miami Herald

21-04-2025

Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy flew to Taiwan last month to pitch business and government leaders on Alaska's state-sponsored LNG export project.
The same day Dunleavy and other Alaska officials arrived in Taipei on the unannounced trip, his office received an email from China's vice consul in San Francisco, Ba Yanfeng. The consulate was aware that Dunleavy was leading a trip to the "province" of Taiwan, and Chinese government officials wanted a meeting with his chief of staff, Ba said.
Dunleavy had stepped into a simmering geopolitical conflict - an issue that China's government describes as the most important and sensitive in its relationship with the U.S.
China claims Taiwan as its own territory and regularly conducts military drills nearby - including some that have simulated blockades and involved firing missiles over the island.
The U.S. doesn't officially recognize Taiwan's independence. But it's a longtime ally, sells arms to the government and has committed in legislation to support the island's defense.
In a formal follow-up note, the Chinese government said Dunleavy's trip "sends a very wrong signal to the 'Taiwan independence' separatist forces," and it urged the governor "to correct such mistakes and avoid their recurrence."
But Dunleavy, in an interview, said he was undeterred.
"I don't allow myself to get pushed around by too many entities or people," he said.
Alaska does significant trade with China, namely in seafood products, though that's diminished since Trump began levying tariffs during his first term. Still, Alaska exports more than $500 million in seafood products to China each year.
But amid China's broader, ongoing trade war with America, experts said it's unlikely that the country will target Alaska with retaliatory action even if the LNG project moves forward with Taiwanese partnership.
"I think this is probably fairly low on China's list of priorities. They have a lot on their plate," said David Sacks, an expert on Taiwan and China and a fellow for Asia studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Sacks described the Chinese correspondence with Dunleavy's office as "pretty pro forma," even if it sounds strident. He also said there's nothing unusual about an American governor or legislator traveling to Taiwan - and he noted that other states, like Arizona, have done robust business with Taiwanese firms without prompting a backlash from China.
"I think it would be fairly unprecedented for the Chinese to take aggressive action here that specifically targets Alaska," he said.
Dunleavy's trip to Taiwan last month came amid a new push by his administration to recruit investment in the $44 billion LNG development. Top Trump administration officials have also been touting the project to Asian allies, and a private firm, Glenfarne, has taken over leadership of the development from a state agency.
Dunleavy's trip also included stops in Thailand, South Korea and Japan, where he met with politicians and corporate executives.
But his Taiwan visit garnered the most headlines. In Taipei, Dunleavy met for an hour with President Lai Ching-Te and held a lunch with the vice president, according to his schedule. He also met with officials from Taipower, the country's primary electric utility, and from the state-owned oil and gas company, CPC.
CPC has signed a non-binding letter of intent to buy one-third of the LNG produced by the Alaska project, and the letter also contemplates investment in the development, according to a description by officials from the state's gas pipeline agency. The letter itself is confidential, according to the agency.
Promoters of Alaska's LNG project, including Dunleavy and Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, say that investment in and purchases of gas from the development can provide Asian allies with a secure source of fuel - with a shorter transit time than shipments from the Middle East. Importing Alaska gas would also lower Taiwan's trade deficit with the U.S., which could curry favor with Trump.
But it's still far from certain that the project will be built. Alaska's government has spent decades studying construction of a gas line, and the current iteration of the project has been dogged by projected high costs.
Taiwanese investment in the project, and any American engagement with the island's government, also risk pushback from China.
In a prepared statement to Northern Journal, the spokesman for China's embassy in Washington, D.C., Liu Pengyu, called Taiwan "an inalienable part of China's territory" and urged "the relevant U.S. side" to cease all forms of official contact with Taiwan.
"China firmly opposes any form of official interaction between the United States and Taiwan, under any pretext or in any capacity," the statement said.
Dunleavy, in the interview, said he did not know how the Chinese government became aware of his visit to the island.
They "wanted me to abort the trip, apparently," he said.
Dunleavy would not directly say whether he recognizes Taiwan's sovereignty, calling that "the biggest loaded question."
"These are human beings, 23 million people. They would like to have a great relationship with the United States," he said. "We want to sell energy. They want energy. I'd love to partner."
Alaska has a long history of trade with Taiwan, and other state officials have traveled there in recent years, including two state senators in 2024. Former Gov. Frank Murkowski has visited more than a dozen times, including as an observer of one of Taiwan's presidential elections.
The Chinese response to Dunleavy's trip, first reported by conservative news site Must Read Alaska, is "pretty boilerplate," said Sacks, the expert from the Council of Foreign Relations.
But its "ominous" language could also be an attempt by the Chinese to ward off business dealings in Taiwan by an American official who's not well-versed in the island's tense political dynamics, Sacks added, in comments that were echoed by a statement from the U.S. Department of State.
"Around the world, including in the United States, the Chinese Communist Party attempts to leverage economic and diplomatic pressure to try to prevent officials from interacting with Taiwan," the statement said. "Robust cooperative activities with Taiwan, including by state leaders, are consistent with U.S. policy."
The statement added that letter of intent from CPC "is another example of the longstanding, deep, and growing trade and investment ties between the United States and Taiwan, which create American jobs and mutual prosperity."
Sacks said he sees the LNG project as being in America's interests - both because of its potential to reduce Taiwan's trade deficit and to give its people a more reliable supply of energy.
But while Sacks described the risk of repercussions to Alaska as low, he also wouldn't completely rule them out. He pointed to a recent move by China instructing the nation's airlines to stop accepting deliveries of jets made by Boeing.
"The context might change now, because the Chinese are looking for ways - in a way that they weren't before - to punish the Trump administration for the tariffs," Sacks said. "I wouldn't foreclose that."
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