Global affairs veteran is first woman to be Taiwan's US envoy

Hsiao Bi-khim, a former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator and current National Security Council adviser, has been appointed Taiwan's de facto ambassador to the United States, the first woman ever to hold the position, the Presidential Office announced.

She will be replacing current representative to the U.S. Stanley Kao, CNA reports.

"The United States is Taiwan's most important international partner, and President Tsai Ing-wen expects Hsiao to contribute her expertise and continue to strengthen relations between Taiwan and the U.S. based on the existing solid foundation," Presidential Office Spokesperson Xavier Chang said in a statement, yesterday. The president also expects Hsiao to be able to create more possibilities for the country, regional prosperity and stability, Chang said.

Tsai believes that with Hsiao's 20 years of experience in international affairs, she will be able to assist the president in pushing forward important work relating to Taiwan-U.S. relations, Chang said.

Born in 1971 in Kobe, Japan to a Taiwanese father and American mother, Hsiao grew up in the southern city of Tainan and left Taiwan for the United States to study after graduating from junior high school.

She later received a bachelor's degree in East Asian Studies from Oberlin College and a master's degree in political science from Columbia University.

Hsiao developed an interest in politics during high school, with her father once revealing that Hsiao passed out flyers in school to support Chinese students after the Tiananmen Square massacre of June 4, 1989.

While working in the library in college, Hsiao read books banned in Taiwan and actively participated in Taiwan's overseas opposition movement, which inspired her to pursue a career in politics.

Her first job was chief executive of DPP's Washington DC office. After returning to Taiwan at the age of 26, she headed the DPP's Department of International Affairs and was the youngest department head in the party at the time.

After the DPP came to power in 2000, Hsiao worked as then president Chen Shui-bian's interpreter and advisor.

She then went on to serve four terms as legislator between 2002 and 2020, but lost her seat to Fu Kun-chi in the legislative election in eastern Taiwan's Hualien early this year.

Hsiao had also served as secretary-general of the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats, deputy executive of the DPP think tank, the New Frontier Foundation, and a board member of the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy during her political career.

Following her loss in the 2020 legislative elections, Hsiao accompanied then Vice President-elect Lai Ching-te on his trip to the United States in February to attend the National Prayer Breakfast, an annual, high-profile gathering of political and religious leaders that was held Feb. 5-6 in Washington D.C.

She was named a National Security Council adviser by President Tsai in March.