The US Senate has passed a bill that could change and greatly improve military relations with Taiwan by allowing active-duty flag and general officers to visit the nation.
The policy switch comes in an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that won Senate support with a vote of 71 to 25.
A final version of the bill may emerge from a House-Senate conference as early as next month.
The Taiwan amendment is expected to survive because the issue has robust bipartisan support in the US House of Representatives and the Senate has already passed it.
US President Barack Obama has pledged to veto the bill because of a fundamental disagreement about funding, but the Senate vote in favor was large enough to be veto-proof and the House vote of 269-151 was close to being veto-proof.
If the bill does become law with the Taiwan amendment intact, it is certain to upset Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), who is due to visit Washington in September.
Introduced by US Senator Dan Coats, the amendment instructs the US secretary of defense to carry out a program of exchanges of senior military officers and senior officials between the US and Taiwan designed to “improve military-to-military relations.”
Currently, the Pentagon relies on retired flag and general officers to visit Taiwan, to appease China, a statement from Coats’ office said.
“It is difficult for military officials in both Taiwan and the US to discuss contingency responses when active duty US generals and flag officers are not able to meet regularly with their Taiwanese counterparts,” it added.
Coats said that he did not believe in tying the military’s hands, but that it was important for the Senate to express concern about the current policy of refusing to allow exchanges.
“The armed forces of Taiwan are a very valuable partner of the US military and without visiting Taiwan, active duty American personnel are not able to familiarize themselves with Taiwan’s command centers, terrain and operational capabilities,” he said.
He also said that a change in the policy would encourage Taiwan to make increased investments in its national defense, especially in light of “belligerent behavior” demonstrated by China.
“Active-duty US generals and flag officers have to be able to visit Taiwan and see its military in action in order to gain a better understanding of Taiwan’s armed forces and the weapons they require for self-defense,” Coats said.
“My proposal simply states that the [US] Department of Defense should undertake a program of senior military officer exchanges with Taiwan, but does not require such exchanges,” he added.
According to the amendment, an “exchange” is an activity, exercise, event or observation opportunity between members of the armed forces and officials of the Pentagon and armed forces personnel and officials of Taiwan.
The amendment states that the exchanges should focus on threat analysis, military doctrine, force planning and logistical support.
They should also include intelligence collection and analysis, operational tactics, techniques and procedures, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Anna Kao (高安) expressed the government’s gratitude for the move, which she said would enhance bilateral relations and cooperation in the area of security.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiu-chuan
SAFETY RISK: The government is working to categorize countries based on their COVID-19 cases and prevention efforts, which would determine quarantine periods The government plans to rank countries based on their COVID-19 risks to determine how to treat tourists and other travelers from those nations once Taiwan reopens its borders, but it is still working out the categories, a top health official told lawmakers yesterday. “We would divide countries around the world into several categories. One category would comprise those countries with very few confirmed COVID-19 cases, such as New Zealand and Palau. Travelers from the countries in this category would only need to practice self-health management,” Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥) told a Legislative Yuan seminar hosted by
China would attack Taiwan if there is no other way of stopping it from becoming independent, Chinese General Li Zuocheng (李作成) said yesterday. Speaking at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People on the 15th anniversary of China’s “Anti-Secession” Law, Li, who is chief of the Joint Staff Department of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Central Military Commission, left the door open to using force. The 2005 law is China’s legislative basis for military action against Taiwan. “If the possibility for peaceful reunification is lost, the people’s armed forces will, with the whole nation, including the people of Taiwan, take all necessary steps to
SECURITY CONCERNS: The Telecom Technology Center ran black-box tests for the Executive Yuan on devices and software from Chinese, US and South Korean firms Network devices from several Chinese manufacturers are insecure and allow personal information to be leaked, testing commissioned by the Executive Yuan has shown. A variety of devices and software, including apps, from Chinese, US and South Korean manufacturers that are used by government agencies at the central and local level were subjected to black-box testing — in which the functionality of an application is examined without knowing about its internal structure, an information-security official said yesterday on condition of anonymity. The Telecom Technology Center conducted the tests, which simulated cyberattacks, to determine their resilience to the attacks, the official said. The center
CASH BOOST: Foreign spouses with residency permits are also eligible for the coupons, which can be bought at post offices or linked to digital payment options Stimulus coupons for Taiwanese and foreign spouses with residency permits can be ordered starting on July 1 and can be used from July 15 to Dec. 31, the Executive Yuan said yesterday. Aimed at boosting domestic spending, the coupons worth NT$3,000 (US$100.04) are to cost NT$1,000. “For our consumers, this is a very good deal as they get three times as much value for their money,” Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) told a news conference in Taipei. While the coupons are to have a wide range of uses, including at department stores, restaurants, book stores, night markets, beauty and hair salons, hotels, and to
RSS