On the eve of the summit meeting between US President George W. Bush and Chinese President Jiang Zemin (
In a letter to Bush, the co-chairmen of the caucus thanked Bush for his "steadfast support for the long-standing partnership" between the US and Taiwan, and urged him to raise with Jiang "the importance you place on US-Taiwan relations and Taiwan's support for democracy and international human rights."
The letter was signed by the four House of Representatives members who share the chairmanship, Democrat Robert Wexler, Republican Steve Chabot, Democrat Sherrod Brown and Republican Dana Rohrabacher.
The letter asid to Bush that "it is important that you impress on President Jiang our utmost respect for the democratic rights of the people of Taiwan to determine their own future and to participate in international organizations."
The signers also urged Bush "to address China's disturbing buildup of 400 missiles along the Taiwan Strait. It is imperative that China reduces its arsenal of weapons and withdraws its missiles aimed at Taiwan, which seriously undermine peace and stability in the region."
The congress members said peace and stability in East Asia hinged on "a secure and prosperous Taiwan as key participant in the family of democracies," adding that, "we stand firmly by you in your support for Taiwan and look forward to working with you to strengthen the long-standing friendship and cooperation between our two nations."
The caucus, which now has some 116 members, about one quarter of the total House membership, was formed in April to advance Taiwan's interests in Washington and to inform government officials and congressmen of Taiwan issues.
The caucus leaders noted that on the eve of his East Asia trip in February that included a meeting with Jiang, Bush referred to Taiwan as a "good friend" along with allies Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and the Philippines.
It also noted that in the National Security Strategy issued earlier this year, the Bush administration praised Taiwan's democratic development and states that the US will "make freedom and development of democratic institutions key themes in our bilateral relations."
"We agree with your statement," the caucus leaders said, "and believe that Taiwan is one of our strongest partners in the global campaign to spread democracy, human rights and the rule of law."
Despite the caucus co-chairmen's letter and other pressure on the administration to raise Taiwan issues, Bush is expected to be reluctant to discuss Taiwan at length.
It is expecting Jiang to bring up the issue as a major point of disagreement with the US.
The US side is expected to reiterate its existing policy, with, perhaps, a greater emphasis on its opposition of a unilateral declaration of independence by Taiwan, in the wake of President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) Aug. 3 "one country on each side" of the Taiwan Strait remark.
There will be no consideration of a fourth joint communique which would alter US policy toward Taiwan, or any other policy initiative with regard to Taiwan.
Bush will meet with Jiang at the Bush family ranch in Crawford, Texas, today.
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