The US House of Representatives has reversed the work of a subcommittee and put the teeth back into a resolution offering strong support for Taiwan on the 30th anniversary of the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA).
In a series of sometimes dramatic speeches on the floor of the House, members of the Committee on Foreign Affairs voiced extraordinary praise for Taiwan and pledged to help preserve its independence.
Passing the newly robust resolution unanimously, members of the House seemed to be fired up by an attempt last week by Eni Faleomavaega, a Democrat from American Samoa, to water down the resolution.
Faleomavaega, chairman of the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, changed the wording of the original resolution when it reached his subcommittee before going to the full House.
He removed a reference to the TRA being the “cornerstone” of US relations with Taiwan and said that it was simply “vital” to relations.
Congressional insiders said later that in making the change Faleomavaega had bowed to Chinese pressure.
Beijing wants the three joint US-China communiques to be known as the “cornerstone” of the US-Taiwan-China triangular relationship because in them the US acknowledges the Chinese position that Taiwan is part of China.
But on learning from the Taipei Times about Faleomavaega's actions, Coen Blaauw, executive director of the Formosan Association for Public Affairs (FAPA), launched a campaign to get the all-important word “cornerstone” put back into the resolution.
FAPA alerted members of the Congressional Taiwan Caucus to the significance of the change, members of FAPA's professionals group sent hundreds of e-mails protesting the change, and association officials talked directly to influential Foreign Affairs Committee officials.
As a result, the resolution was changed back to its original wording and the word “cornerstone” was reinserted.
To emphasize the point, several members of Congress deliberately used “cornerstone” in their speeches on the floor of the House.
“It was a meaningful victory,” Blaauw said.
Howard Berman, a California Democrat and chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, said on introducing the amended resolution: “Taiwan has the potential to play a very constructive role in international affairs. I would urge that special consideration be given to Taiwan's desire to gain observer status with the World Health Assembly later this spring. I urge China to do more to reach out to both the people and the government of Taiwan.”
“I am confident that the Taiwan Relations Act will remain the cornerstone of our relationship with Taiwan,” he said.
Lincoln Diaz-Balart, a Florida Republican, said: “This resolution reaffirms the United States' commitment to the Republic of China on Taiwan and describes the Taiwan Relations Act as the cornerstone of US-Taiwan relations.”
“It stresses the concept of peace through strength and has served as a key deterrent to Communist Chinese military aggression and its attempts at forced reunification. As members of Congress, we will do all that is necessary so that the people of Taiwan will have the tools they need to defend themselves. We must, and we will, continue to remind the world that Taiwan's security is of the utmost importance to the US Congress,” he added.
“We must do everything in our power to continue protecting Taiwan and ensuring its survival,” said Shelley Berkley, a Democrat from Nevada.
Republican Dan Burton said Taiwan was a “true friend.”
“They [Taiwanese] have been with us through thick and thin. There have been times when I think we have not been as good a friend to them as we should have been,” he said.
Mario Diaz-Balart, another Florida Republican, said: “The people of Taiwan should know and the world should know that the US Congress stands with this strong and proud democracy.”
And Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Florida Republican and ranking member of the Committee, said: “This resolution recognizes the TRA as the cornerstone of the unbreakable relations that exist today between the US and Taiwan.”
“We are reconfirming our commitment to strengthen the US-Taiwan relationship and our support for the defensive needs of the Taiwanese people. Taiwan has become a beacon of hope to all who aspire to democracy in the Chinese cultural world. Now more than ever, we must ensure that the people of Taiwan are provided with the defensive weapons needed to ensure that no sudden change in the status quo by the use of force undermines their political aspirations,” he said.
“Now more than ever, we must ensure that Congress is fully consulted on a regular basis on both our overall relations with Taiwan and our planned future arms sales,” she said, adding: “Let us send a strong, unequivocal message to Beijing that we are unwavering in our commitment to democracy, to free markets and to the people of Taiwan.”
In response to the resolution, Taiwan's de facto embassy, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office, released a statement saying it “deeply appreciated the bipartisan and uniform support of the US Congress.”
The Chinese government called on the US to acknowledge that Taiwan is part of China.
“Our position is consistent, we hope that the US side can support ... the one-China principle,” Fan Liqing (范麗青), spokeswoman of China's Taiwan Affairs Office, told journalists in a brief statement.
She was referring to diplomatic agreements between China and the US in which the US acknowledges Beijing's claim “that there is but one China and Taiwan is part of China.”
Congress passed the TRA after then-US president Jimmy Carter shifted recognition in 1979.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY AFP
‘DEMOCRATIC FISH’: Soichiro Hayashi said he wants to return Taiwan’s kindness after it helped with relief efforts after the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami Japanese fish farmers are ready to help Taiwan after China banned Taiwanese grouper imports, the Sankei Shimbun reported yesterday. The Chinese General Administration of Customs suspended imports of the fish on Monday last week, citing prohibited chemicals and excessive levels of oxytetracycline allegedly found in grouper imports since December last year. Soichiro Hayashi, president of the Hayashi Trout Farm in Japan’s Fukushima Prefecture, is leading the push for Taiwanese grouper imports, the newspaper said. His call has caught the attention of several large sushi chains, the report said. Hayashi, who is the Fukushima branch head of the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association in Japan,
‘TROJAN HORSE’ SCHEME: The comment that a bridge would allow China’s PLA to easily launch an attack shows ‘a lack of backbone,’ Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je said Critics accused Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) of being oblivious to national security concerns after he proposed constructing a bridge to link Kinmen and China’s Xiamen (廈門). Ko, who is also the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) chairman, made the proposal when presiding over the opening ceremony of the party’s office in Kinmen on Saturday. He said the bridge could solve Kinmen’s population, electricity and garbage problems, as well as serve as a shortcut for leaving or entering Taiwan without traveling via Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport). He also proposed building a hospital in Kinmen to attract people who are seeking medical treatment in
OVER THE HUMP: In a seven-day period ending on Wednesday, the nation reported 366,628 new cases, down 19 percent from the 451,358 reported in the previous week The nation might further open up to more arrivals in the next two months, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday, as it reported 48,283 new local COVID-19 cases, down from more than 50,000 in the previous few days. Taiwan on Wednesday last week introduced a plan to allow up to 25,000 arrivals per week as part of efforts to gradually reopen borders, which includes reducing mandatory quarantines for inbound travelers from seven to three days, followed by four days in “self-initiated epidemic prevention.” The quota covers inbound Taiwanese arrivals, businesspeople and migrant workers. Former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) yesterday said
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday said it is monitoring Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy ship movements near Taiwan, after the Japanese Ministry of Defense disclosed that Chinese vessels made a rare voyage between Yilan County and Japan’s Yonaguni. The Japanese ministry on Wednesday said that two Chinese navy ships on Tuesday diverted from their usual route of entering the Pacific Ocean via the Miyako Strait and for the first time traveled there between Yilan and Yonaguni. The Japan Self-Defense Forces said that it picked up the presence of China’s Type-056A Jiangdao-class corvette 220km north of Yonaguni at 9am on Tuesday. The
RSS