In a surprising turn of events over US arms sales to Taiwan, a US senator said he would use his powers to block a full Senate vote on the appointment of a new deputy secretary of state until Washington approves the sale of F-16C/D aircraft requested by Taipei.
US Senator for Texas John Cornyn, a member of the Armed Services Committee, said the US Department of State must inform Taipei that it would act on a formal Letter of Request (LOR) from the Taiwanese government to purchase 66 new F-16C/Ds. Should Washington fail to do so, Cornyn said he would use his powers to block a full Senate vote on the nomination of William Burns, currently US undersecretary of state for political affairs, as deputy secretary of state, the Washington Times reported on Wednesday, citing information from Senate aides.
Cornyn’s threatened hold also applies to the release by the Pentagon of a long-delayed report to Congress on the balance of air power in the Taiwan Strait.
Photo: EPA
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved Burns’ appointment during a meeting on Thursday. Also approved were the nominations of US Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke as ambassador to China and Ryan Crocker as ambassador to Afghanistan. A full Senate vote is now required before the appointments can be confirmed.
To date, Taiwan has submitted three LORs to the US on the F-16C/Ds. All three were made by the administration of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁). The administrations of former US president George W. Bush and US President Barack Obama have refused to accept the letters, reportedly over concerns about possible negative repercussions on US-China relations.
Asked for comment about Cornyn’s gambit, president of the US-Taiwan Business Council Rupert Hammond-Chambers was upbeat about the significance of the move.
“Finally we’re seeing real ways by the Congress to provide real leverage on the government to act on the F-16s,” he told the Taipei Times yesterday, adding that this would force the Obama administration to respond.
As to how long Cornyn could force a hold on the vote, Hammond-Chambers said it was hard to tell and that to give a timeline would telegraph to the US State Department how long it needed to wait things out.
“Taiwan should submit a new LOR immediately,” he said.
For his part, former Taiwanese representative to Washington Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said the development meant that the Obama administration would find itself under pressure to make a decision.
“This will come from various corners, including the US Congress, the policy community, Taipei and the media ... especially after statements [by Hammond-Chambers during testimony at the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs on June 16] that the US administration has declined to receive the LORs,” Wu said.
This also puts pressure on the Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) administration to submit a new LOR as soon as possible, he said.
Wu nevertheless said that other factors could continue to delay a response by the Obama administration.
“If something is going to happen, I’d say timing will be an important factor. This applies to the elections in Taiwan,” he said. “The presidential election in the US also needs to be considered.”
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
About 4.2 million tourist arrivals were recorded in the first half of this year, a 10 percent increase from the same period last year, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. The growth continues to be consistent, with the fourth quarter of this year expected to be the peak in Taiwan, the agency said, adding that it plans to promote Taiwan overseas via partnerships and major events. From January to June, 9.14 million international departures were recorded from Taiwan, an 11 percent increase from the same period last year, with 3.3 million headed for Japan, 1.52 million for China and 832,962 to South Korea,
RSS