Americans in Taiwan mostly unfazed by US evacuation plan report

KAOHSIUNG, Taiwan – Americans in Taiwan are starting to give a little more thought to what they would or should do in the event of the unthinkable: an attack by China on the island. 

Yet based on a small sampling of questions posed to U.S. citizens by Fox News Digital, many do not seem too worried and are not doing much or any real prep work. They seem unfazed by recent reports that the U.S. is drawing up evacuation plans for the estimated 80,000 Americans who live and work here. 

“The U.S. government is preparing evacuation plans for American citizens living in Taiwan,” claimed a mid-June report by The Messenger, which said it had obtained the information from three anonymous sources. U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, however, said last Monday that the U.S. has seen “no indication” that the situation in Taiwan might lead to a change in the current policy of not evacuating private U.S. citizens from conflict zones.

The most likely scenario that meshes with both the report and Kirby’s comments is that the U.S. is indeed “reviewing” its what-if plans. Washington has plans for virtually everything, and of course, global security rethinks following Russia’s invasion of its neighbor Ukraine has the world focused on Taiwan. 

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Graham Dart runs a bar on a small island about five minutes by ferry from the southern Taiwanese port city of Kaohsiung. Dart, an American who served in the U.S. Army, told Fox News Digital that the chatter he has been hearing about “getting a go-bag together” does not pass the logic test. “I don’t know anyone who is preparing,” said Dart. “Go bags are for needing to leave very, very suddenly, and I can’t think of a scenario where I would need one. China invades some outlying island; do I need a go-bag? Nope. A naval blockade? Nope. Sudden missile strikes to decapitate Taiwan’s military and political leadership? Again, nope.” 

Other Americans, such as Taipei-based Justin, who withheld he and his wife’s last name, expressed similar sentiments, while also raising some interesting questions. Justin’s wife, Jenna, is a Canadian elementary school teacher, and the couple have a young daughter. 

Justin works in finance, and he told Fox News Digital that naturally, he has thought about money, noting that in a situation as serious as a war, passports and money are really the only two things you cannot do without. While chatting with Fox News Digital, he did however, begin wondering how he would get his hands on enough funds. 

“I have ATM cards and credit cards, but would they work? Many Americans could fly out to somewhere nearby if it was necessary. But say I’m in Thailand: would my bank in Taiwan still be able to remit money?” Justin finished his thought by saying he was now considering keeping some cash in a safe but accessible location. 

Fox News Digital spoke to several other Americans and all reported similar feelings. Only a tiny fraction of them are preparing for, or giving much thought to, a Chinese invasion. 

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Speaking in a private capacity, Ross Feingold, a director of the Paris-based Association of Americans Resident Overseas (founded in 1973), told Fox News Digital that he very much agrees with the State Department’s advice that citizens – especially those who permanently live in Taiwan – should register with their nearest consular office. Feingold, however, also does not view the reports of U.S. evacuation plans as anything new. 

“Of course the U.S. government is making plans regarding Taiwan. There’s going to be much more thought put into getting Americans out of say, Baghdad than Paris, as an example,” noted Feingold, who also told Fox News Digital that among the many good reasons to register with your consulate is faster processing of lost passports, a document obviously needed to travel. He also told Fox News Digital that the State Department could do a lot better in its promotion of registration. 

However, while most Taiwan-based Americans seem to be ignoring current Taiwan-China “tensions” – much like the majority of Taiwanese citizens – there are, of course, many who have at least given it some thought. Jenna spends time with other American and Canadian families with kids in Taipei, and she told Fox News Digital that their group has discussed what they should do and where they should go should disaster strike. 

“I am, however, interested in knowing more from the Taiwan government,” she explained to Fox News Digital. “We have apps that show all the basements in the city, but are they good enough to be air raid shelters? And who supervises the actual bomb shelters? Do they change the water and rotate food items? How does one open the door to a shelter? And finally, who is in charge should the president and vice-president be incapacitated?” 

The Taiwan government was criticized when it put out a civil defense handbook guide in 2022 that suggested people contact the authorities via phone or scan QR codes to get the latest information as it is commonly known that phone lines and the internet are among the first things to go down in many emergencies. A new booklet has been released, but so far, in Chinese only. 

Taiwan does have one English radio station, International Community Radio Taipei (ICRT, FM 100.7), and it would undoubtedly be a good source of info in a crisis, but aside from vehicles, a radio is not something many own these days. Perhaps that should be reconsidered. 

Down in sunny, tropical Kaohsiung, Graham Dart told Fox News Digital that he’s constantly pointing out to concerned folks back home that a full-scale invasion simply could not be a surprise. “They’d need a month, maybe more. And we have satellites and spy planes, etc. As far as an invasion goes, they’re not going to be able to pull off some kind of Pearl Harbor sneak attack.” 

Dart says he hopes anyone thinking of coming to Taiwan for work or play does so, and that no one should be scared away by overblown fears – fears that some analysts argue are part of Chinese propaganda intended to promote the idea of the “inevitability” of a communist victory over Taiwan.