TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The high representatives of Taiwan in the United States held a closed-door meeting in Washington this month with a group of relatively unknown intelligence advisors, which officials say has emerged as a key power play in President Donald Trump's circle.
A meeting with Alexander Yui, Taiwan's de facto ambassador to the U.S., was divulged by two sources familiar with the matter. This is one of the highest-level Taiwan-U.S. contacts during Trump's second term.
The meeting was also an unusually significant event for the previously obscure President's Intelligence Advisory Board (PIAB). The PIAB consists of individuals with jobs outside the federal government who have historically played a minor role in policymaking.
A White House official downplayed the meeting, saying that it was not an official PIAB meeting but rather an informal discussion between a few PIAB members and a foreign diplomat that was arranged through mutual contacts.
However, as reported by CNA, several national security officials view the advisory board as an emerging power center in the Trump White House. This is particularly true given that national security officials across the U.S. government have been sidelined by mass firings.
The meeting with Yui, previously unreported, appears to be one of the signs.
Taiwan, a self-governing island claimed by China, does not have formal relations with the United States. Therefore, meetings between U.S. officials and Taiwan are a sensitive diplomatic issue.
In a phone call on Friday, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed plans to transfer the ownership of the short-video app TikTok to the U.S. President Trump said they plan to meet in person at a summit in South Korea in October.
Neither the U.S. nor the Chinese statements on the phone call mentioned Taiwan.
Truth Social Manager
Several influential PIAB members are in Trump's inner circle and speak directly to the president. PIAB Chair Devin Nunes is very close to Trump, said three sources familiar with their relationship.
Nunes is a former U.S. Congressman and the current CEO of Trump Media & Technology Group, which operates Truth Social, Trump's favorite social media platform.
Other PIAB members include Robert O'Brien, who served as Trump's national security advisor during his first term, and Amaryllis Fox, who currently serves as the deputy national intelligence director.
Michael Desch, a political science professor at Notre Dame and co-author of Privileged and Confidential: The Secret History of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board, said that the PIAB seems to be a more credible and active body compared to the early days of Trump's first term, when the board remained chairless into his second year.
"There were a lot more pros, candidly, than I had anticipated," Desch said about the current PIAB membership list. "There are some serious people on it."
However, no one can confirm what was discussed in the meeting with Yui or who was on the PIAB attendee list.
O'Brien and Nunes were among those present at the meeting, said one source who spoke on condition of anonymity because PIAB activities are confidential.
Taiwan's Defense Minister, Wellington Koo, had planned a visit to the Washington area early this summer to meet with Elbridge Colby, the U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Policy. However, the visit was canceled.
The Taiwan representative office in Washington and O'Brien declined to comment.
Trump Media, led by Nunes, did not respond to requests for comment, nor did a PIAB administration official.
In the past few months, the National Security Council (NSC), a much larger and more established component of the White House that advises the president on foreign policy, has been hit by several waves of firings, leaving the once-powerful group a mere shell.
PIAB in Favor?
The fate of PIAB is in stark contrast.
According to someone familiar with its operations, the board has begun to meet regularly in recent months. Three others, including a U.S. intelligence official, said that PIAB members have become more prominent figures in the White House.
Among the topics discussed by PIAB members are artificial intelligence (AI) policies and strategies to further restructure the intelligence community, said two sources familiar with the group's work.
Although it is unclear what policies have been presented to the president, Trump is known for often praising his supporters.
Fox, the deputy national intelligence director, is vying for the deputy CIA director role and also holds a senior position in the Office of Management and Budget.
Some NSC staff who were dismissed in the past few months have been approached to fill PIAB staff positions, said another source familiar with this directly.
Several foreign diplomats have reached out to PIAB members for information on the government's positions on national security matters, said two diplomatic sources.
Other national security officials caution against drawing a direct cause-and-effect relationship between the increasing influence of PIAB and the dismissals elsewhere in the government.
Ultimately, they say, the volunteer board, many of whom live outside Washington, is unlikely to be routinely involved in detailed and complex national security decisions.
The president appoints PIAB members. Although unpaid, they have high-level security clearances, and PIAB is considered an official component of the White House.
The board's influence varies in different administrations.
While Trump waited nearly halfway through his first term to appoint a PIAB chair, this time, he appointed a chair a month before the inauguration.
In February, he announced 11 additional members.
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