For 30 years, Boston and Taipei have been linked as sister cities, building strong cultural and economic ties. But their history goes back much further than that.

Continuing GBH’s Morning Edition ongoing series exploring Boston’s international relationships, guest host Tori Bedford spoke with Charles Liao, who leads the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Boston. What follows is a lightly edited transcript.

Tori Bedford: Of course, Taiwanese people have long been immigrating to Boston and have become a really big part of the fabric of our modern Chinatown and really shaped the whole city. Can you kick us off by talking about the history between these two sister cities and that immigration story?

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Charles Liao: Yes, sister city relations between Taipei and Boston was established in 1996 when Tom Menino was mayor of Boston. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the sister city relationship, but the relationship really started long before that. Actually, Taiwan and Massachusetts established sister state relations. Since then, the two sides have strengthened their relationship through many different kinds of exchanges, helping expand cooperation in trade, education, culture and many other areas.

Over time, the relationship has continued to grow stronger and closer. One very important reason for that is the support from both the Taiwanese community and the Chinese community here in Boston. Back in the 1960s and ’70s, when the first wave of Taiwanese immigrants came to Boston, and many Chinese immigrants were arriving as well, they worked hand in hand with governments to support closer ties between Taiwan and Boston.

So I think the contributions made by both the Taiwanese and the Chinese community in Boston have been tremendous, and they deserve a great deal of credit.

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Bedford: One thing that Taipei and Boston have in common is their major role in the technology industry. In particular, Taiwan is a major center of chip manufacturing. Tell us about how science and technology have shaped modern Taipei.

Liao: Yeah, Boston is the capital of Massachusetts and Taipei is the capital of Taiwan — so both are major hubs for technology, innovation, education and the research centers. Both cities are also places where people from around the world come to learn, create and start new ideas. They also have very vibrant startup ecosystems, rich cultural communities and a deep appreciation for education.

Culturally speaking, I would say that the two cities feel surprisingly similar. Just like Boston, Taipei is a city where history and the modern life exist side by side. You can walk past centuries-old temples or historic neighborhoods, and then suddenly you see the skyscrapers like Taipei 101 building.

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So both cities really value preserving their history while continuing to modernize and innovate.

“Culturally speaking, I would say that the two cities feel surprisingly similar. Just like Boston, Taipei is a city where history and the modern life exist side by side.”
Charles Liao, leads Taipei’s economic and cultural office in Boston

Bedford: Taiwan has been in the news lately with increasing attempts by China to exert pressure or influence over Taiwan. The U.S. government has a strong relationship with Taiwan. We’ve seen recent attempts to weaken that as well. In your conversations with Taiwanese people here in Massachusetts, what are people saying?

Liao: Here, we hope to continue expanding cooperation with our friends and partners in New England in the areas like trade, technology and biotech. Taiwan has proven itself to be a reliable and a trustworthy partner for the United States, and I believe that the continuing cooperation will benefit both of our peoples — especially like you mentioned, as we see that authoritarian regimes becoming more aggressive and provocative around the world.

All the democracies everywhere is being tested like never before. So we believe that all democracies, we need to stand together to defend our rule-based international order and our shared values.

Bedford: Your Economic and Cultural Office in Boston is right near South Station. What has it been like to see during the World Cup all of these different groups of people — Iraqis and Scottish people and Norwegians and Haitians — coming together for this big event?

Liao: It is fantastic, although the traffic is a little bit crazy, but I know we enjoy that kind of atmosphere.

As you may be aware, traditionally Taiwan may not be a good soccer team, but I think we share the same spirit. That kind of spirit is like teamwork and resilience.