Indiana State Treasurer Daniel Elliott has rejected a request from Chinese authorities to halt official engagement with Taiwan, after attending a reception hosted by Taipei’s representative office in Chicago.
Elliott shared a letter from China’s consulate general in Chicago on social media on Oct. 27. The Chinese authorities criticized his participation in the Oct. 9 reception, which the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) hosted to celebrate Taiwan’s National Day.
Celebrated annually on Oct. 10, the public holiday—also known as Double Ten Day—marks the 115th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of China, Taiwan’s official name. Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith was among a large contingent of foreign guests who traveled to Taiwan for the celebration.
The letter said Elliott’s action “wrongly regarded Taiwan as a country” and “infringed on China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
The Chinese consulate general urged Elliott to “respect China’s core interests” and “refrain from having any official interaction with the Taiwan authorities in the future.”
Washington and Taipei do not maintain formal diplomatic relations, but each operates a de facto embassy in the other’s territory. Taiwan’s de facto embassy in the United States, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO), operates 13 TECO offices in 12 U.S. cities and Guam, including Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco.
Responding to the letter in an Oct. 27 X post, Elliott said he rejected “any suggestion that a foreign government’s political demands should direct the lawful conduct of an Indiana officeholder.”
“Beijing can send all the letters it wants. I answer to Hoosiers. The Chinese Communist Party does not dictate how Indiana officials do their jobs,” he wrote.
“In Indiana, government works for the people. The people don’t work for the government. The Chinese Communist Party has that backward, and it’s been backward for a long time.”
Elliott questioned why Beijing was monitoring the activities of Indiana’s elected officials, comparing it to its surveillance of its own citizens.
He suggested Indiana’s restrictions on foreign purchases of farmland, including those linked to Beijing, may have drawn China’s attention.
The reception was held at the Union League Club of Chicago. According to a TECO press release, Elliott was joined by Wisconsin State Treasurer John Leiber and other lawmakers from Indiana and Iowa.
TECO in Chicago thanked Elliott’s support for Taiwan.
“Democracies and its freedom-loving peoples won’t be intimidated and threatened with despicable and unlawful act of interference! Taiwan is always [fortunate] to have good friends!,” the office wrote in an Oct. 28 X post.
Indiana and Taiwan have deepened their ties in recent years.
In September 2025, Taiwan signed two letters of intent with the Indiana Corn Marketing Council and the Indiana Soybean Alliance for nearly $6.4 billion in planned purchases of U.S. corn and soybeans.
“This is great news for America’s farm economy, and for Indiana farmers, who rank among the top producers in both crops,” Indiana Gov. Mike Braun wrote on X about the purchases at the time.
In 2024, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation opened a new office in Taipei.
“Indiana’s economic engagement with Taiwan serves Indiana’s interests, and it will continue regardless of the [Chinese Communist Party’s] preferred framing,” Elliott said in his Oct. 27 X post.
Indiana has also taken several measures to counter threats from foreign adversaries, particularly China.
In April, a new state law began requiring foreign agents to register with the Indiana Attorney General and fully disclose their activities, funding, and expenditures.
In 2024, two laws took effect: one barring those countries from owning, purchasing, or leasing Hoosier farmland, and another prohibiting sister-city agreements with them.
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