The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018, which includes US backing for expanded military exchanges with Taiwan and amendments to US Navy port of call stops in Taiwan.
The Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), which serves as the foundation for commercial, cultural and other relations between Taiwan and the US, and the “six assurances” are included in the bill, which cleared with a 344 to 81 vote.
It is the “sense of [US] Congress” that, in accordance with the TRA, the US should make available and provide timely review of requests for defense articles and services that might be necessary for Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability, the bill states.
The US should seek opportunities for expanded training and exercises with Taiwan, and encourage Taiwan’s continued investment in asymmetric self-defense capabilities that are mobile and survivable against threatening forces, it adds.
It was also the “sense of Congress” that “Taiwan should significantly increase its defense budget to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability.”
A “sense of Congress” is a formal expression of opinion, but is not legally binding.
Many amendments to the bill were also passed, including two on Taiwan.
One amendment requires the US secretary of defense to report to congressional committees by no later than Sept. 1 next year on “the feasibility and advisability” of the US Navy making port of call stops in Taiwan and of the Republic of China Navy making port calls in US territories.
The other amendment pertains to normalizing the transfer of defense articles and defense services to Taiwan, again using a “sense of Congress” clause.
It stipulates that no later than 120 days after the US secretary of defense receives a letter of request from Taiwan with respect to the transfer of a defense article or service to Taiwan, the secretary, in consultation with the US secretary of state, should submit a congressional report on the issue.
Taiwan yesterday expressed its gratitude to the US Congress for its interest in Taiwan’s defense and the security ties between the two.
“We will continue to attach importance to investment in national defense and bolster our self-defense capabilities, and stay in close contact with friends in the US to ensure regional peace and stability,” Presidential Office spokesman Sidney Lin (林鶴明) said.
The US Senate is also to vote on a draft National Defense Authorization Act, which was recently passed by the US Senate’s Armed Services Committee. If the version is different from that of the US House of Representatives, the two chambers are to negotiate a final version.
The National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology yesterday showcased its locally developed variants of the Vision 60 robotic patrol dog, which it plans to deploy on the nation’s outlying territories in the South China Sea. The variants were produced under the Joint Lab project — created by the institute and domestic companies — and assembled with domestically produced motors, lenses and artificial intelligence (AI) systems alongside licensed tech from the US, Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division deputy director Jen Kuo-kang (任國光) told the media event at a military base in Taipei’s Dazhi (大直) area. Taiwan has built up its strengths
RIGHT DIRECTION: Taiwan’s efforts to prevent forced labor include a proposal to ‘fully prohibit’ employers from withholding workers’ documents, an official said Taiwan is to establish a mechanism to restrict imports of goods linked to forced labor, the Executive Yuan said yesterday, after the US proposed imposing additional tariffs on Taiwanese goods over labor concerns. “The Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Economic Affairs are to establish an interministerial review procedure,” Executive Yuan spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said at a news briefing in Taipei. “The government is to use the Foreign Trade Act [貿易法] as the legal basis to restrict imports of goods produced with forced labor” and bring its supply chain governance more in line with international standards on human rights, resilience
NOT IMMEDIATE: Taiwan has a chance to appeal the proposed 10 percent tariff before it starts, while other countries face a 12.5 percent tariff from the trade office Taiwan is among 60 economies determined by the US to have failed to impose or enforce a ban on the importation of goods produced with forced labor, according to a notice released on Tuesday by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), which proposed imposing an additional 10 percent or more tariff on them. The USTR in a statement said that following an investigation, it had determined under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 that the failure of the 60 economies to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor is
TIT-FOR-TAT: The US allegedly revoked the visa of a Chinese national working at Xinhua News Agency in the US in response to Beijing’s expulsion of Vivian Wang The Presidential Office yesterday condemned China for expelling a New York Times correspondent from Beijing following the newspaper’s interview with President William Lai (賴清德), saying the move highlighted Beijing’s suppression of press freedom and its threat to international news media. Taiwan has noted a series of recent incidents in which Beijing used similar tactics to “threaten and pressure international media outlets and journalists,” Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said in a statement. “This concerns not only press freedom and freedom of expression, but also the safety of journalists, and Taiwan and relevant partners are paying close attention to the situation,” she
RSS