[International] Germany's "Silicon Saxony Day" Grandly Held, Taiwan Invited as Partner Country for the First Time

Germany's largest semiconductor industry cluster, "Silicon Saxony," held its annual grand event in Dresden this week, with Taiwan invited as the official partner country for the first time. The Minister-President of Saxony, Michael Kretschmer, publicly acknowledged Taiwan's achievements in the high-tech industry during the event and pledged full support for the smooth progress of TSMC's factory construction plan in Germany. The 20th Silicon Saxony Days 2026 took place from the 15th to the 17th at Dresden Airport, organized by the Silicon Saxony Association. It focused on topics such as semiconductors, AI, advanced manufacturing, supply chain resilience, and sustainable transformation, making it Europe's largest event for the microelectronics and ICT industries. According to a press release from the Taipei Representative Office in Germany, this year's event attracted over 2,000 participants from the global semiconductor industry, technology companies, and government departments, setting a record for the event's history. In his opening address, Saxony's Minister-President Kretschmer praised Taiwan's high-tech achievements as worthy of much learning for Germany and stated his commitment to ensuring the smooth progress of TSMC's factory construction plan in Dresden. Ambassador to Germany, Shieu Ruey-sheng, was invited to deliver a speech titled "Taiwan: A Natural and Value Partner for Democratic Economies." In his address, he emphasized the shared democratic values between Taiwan and Germany, as well as Taiwan's crucial role in the global semiconductor and AI supply chains. Furthermore, the "German-Taiwanese Economic Forum" (Deutsch-Taiwanisches Wirtschaftsforum) was officially announced at the opening ceremony of Silicon Saxony Days. The "German-Taiwanese Economic Forum" was initiated by Daniela Kluckert, former Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure, and Frank Muller-Rosentritt, a former Member of the German Bundestag. It aims to connect German and Taiwanese businesses, political entities, and research institutions to promote bilateral economic cooperation and investment. Minister-President Kretschmer and Ambassador Shieu signed the founding document of the "German-Taiwanese Economic Forum" on the opening day, jointly witnessing the continuous deepening of economic and trade relations between Taiwan and Germany. Ambassador Shieu expressed his hope that the German-Taiwanese Economic Forum and the Silicon Saxony Association will assist more German small and medium-sized enterprises in collaborating with Taiwan's semiconductor supply chain in the future, and also facilitate Taiwanese investors in Germany to integrate more deeply into the European industrial ecosystem. In addition to official events, Ambassador Shieu visited the booths of several exhibiting Taiwanese companies and supply chain manufacturers, arranged by the organizers. He gained insights into the development of Taiwanese businesses in the German market and conveyed the government's continued support for overseas expansion to the industry representatives. (Editor: Liu Hsiang-hua)