The passage of the Taiwan Policy Act in the US has been blocked by the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, with Republican lawmakers voicing doubts over the handling of safety issues relating to visa-waiver programs by the administration of US President Barack Obama, US Congress sources said.
Republican Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen introduced the Taiwan Policy Act last year to “help ensure that Taiwan’s peace, prosperity and security will be maintained ... [and to] further strengthen commercial relations between the United States and the people of Taiwan” after the Obama administration declined to sell Taiwan F-16C/D aircraft.
The act is still likely to be passed, a source said, but more time is needed to negotiate with those opposing it.
Other lawmakers have recently spoken out against the act in response to the dispute over the import of US beef, sources said.
However, after negotiations and amendments to the wording, those lawmakers are no longer opposed, they added.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith has always been friendly toward Taiwan, sources said, adding that Smith’s aides had confirmed that he was concerned with the overall execution of the visa-waiver program.
The US Department of Justice and the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which are in charge of the process, said that in recent years there has been much concern over national security issues relating to visa-waiver programs, the aide said.
No matter how many times the government has emphasized the national security features in such programs, the DHS has never given a high priority to security requirements appended to visa-waiver programs, the aide said.
Smith and other lawmakers believe that visa-waiver programs relate to the national security of the US and that unless security requirements are rigorously met, they should not be expanded to include more countries, the aide said.
Meanwhile, other sources said that the US presidential election in November is complicating matters, with Republicans and Democrats at loggerheads over immigration and border security issues.
Overseas Taiwanese are encouraging US voters to telephone lawmakers opposed to the act to solicit their support, a source said.
Translated by Jake Chung, staff writer
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source