US President Barack Obama on Friday signed into law the US National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017, which for the first time included a section on senior military exchanges with Taiwan.
The bill cleared the US Senate in a 92-7 vote on Dec. 8 after its approval in the US House of Representatives by a vote of 375-34 six days earlier.
Section 1284 of the act states: “It is the sense of [US] Congress that the [US] Secretary of Defense should conduct a program of senior military exchanges between the United States and Taiwan that have the objective of improving military-to-military relations and defense cooperation between the United States and Taiwan.”
Screengrab from the Military News Agency Web site
A “sense of Congress” is not legally binding, even though the language is included in an otherwise legally effective legislation.
It reflects the view of many on Capitol Hill who think the current level of US military exchanges with Taiwan has been insufficient.
It remains to be seen whether or how the administration of US president-elect Donald Trump will act on this section of the act.
Trump takes office on Jan. 20.
If implemented, the act stipulates that the senior military exchange program should be conducted at least once each calendar year in both Taiwan and the US.
It defines “senior military exchange” as “an activity, exercise, professional education event, or observation opportunity in which senior military officers and senior defense officials participate.”
It also defined “senior military officer” as a general or flag officer on active duty in the armed forces, while “senior defense official,” in reference to the US Department of Defense, was defined as a civilian official at the level of assistant secretary of defense or above.
The act will elevate Taiwan-US military ties to another level if institutionalized, National Chung Hsing University Institute of International Politics professor Tsai Ming-yan (蔡明彥) said yesterday.
The law is not only symbolic, but will have some practical effects, he said, adding that Taiwan and the US would have deeper cooperation on threat assessments and battle plans.
China might become agitated over the closer Taiwan-US ties, but continued threat of armed conflict against Taiwan would only deepen Taiwan’s resolve to work with the US and Japan, Tsai said, adding that China should seek to enter into dialogue with Taiwan.
The Ministry of National Defense said it has made a number of plans for next year, including Political Warfare Bureau Director Wen Chen-kuo (聞振國) leading a delegation to visit the Pentagon, at which time the two sides would discuss strategic goals and cooperation on matters of psychological warfare.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
HOTEL HIRING: An official said that hoteliers could begin hiring migrant workers next year, but must adhere to a rule requiring a NT$2,000 salary hike for Taiwanese The government is to allow the hospitality industry to recruit mid-level migrant workers for housekeeping and three other lines of work after the Executive Yuan yesterday approved a proposal by the Ministry of Labor. A shortage of workers at hotels and accommodation facilities was discussed at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee. A 2023 survey conducted by the Tourism Administration found that Taiwan’s lodging industry was short of about 6,600 housekeeping and cleaning workers, the agency said in a report to the committee. The shortage of workers in the industry is being studied, the report said. Hotel and Lodging Division Deputy Director Cheng
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
RSS