The US National Bureau of Asian Research is urging the US Congress to “rekindle” its contacts with the Legislative Yuan in Taipei as US-China relations move into a potentially difficult period.
“More frequent exchanges between members of the US Congress and their counterparts in Taiwan would be an important demonstration of the US’ commitment to democracy in a Chinese context,” a bureau report said.
Written by former assistant US trade representative for China Affairs Charles Freeman, the report said that whatever the outcome of next year’s presidential election, the US Congress should be at the forefront of international efforts to support the “impressive evolution of democracy” in Taiwan.
“The substantial history of inter-parliamentary relations between the US Congress and the Legislative Yuan merits rekindling,” Freeman said.
A senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, Freeman said that the US Congress has a crucial role to play in stabilizing the US-China relationship.
“There are few examples in history where a de facto superpower like the US faced a rising power like China and did not enter into direct conflict,” Freeman said.
“Glossing over disagreements and competing interests is thus not an option for policymakers,” he said. “China is not the Soviet Union and the US is trying neither to contain China nor begin a new Cold War.”
However, Freeman said that other Asia-Pacific nations — trying to avoid being bullied by a rising China — are drawing the US into a potentially hostile military posture with China.
Military assistance to Taiwan and other US activities on China’s periphery “smack to many in Chinese policy circles of a Cold War-style containment policy,” he said.
Freeman said that next year’s presidential election will “largely be a referendum on the policies of President Ma Jing-jeou (馬英九), which have built closer economic ties between China and Taiwan.”
He said that if, “as many analysts predict,” the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is successful in defeating the ruling Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), “that could signal a cooling of relations between Beijing and Taipei, and tensions in the region could spike.”
Freeman said Taiwan has always been the biggest challenge to US-China relations.
“If the relationship between Beijing and Taiwan sours badly, US arms sales to Taiwan will be closely scrutinized for the degree to which they embolden those who advocate de jure independence from Chinese rule,” he said.
The US Congress will “invariably” be drawn into the debate on arms sales and it will be important for policymakers to understand and weigh in on what arms package will contribute to stability across the Taiwan Strait.
Freeman said there is an element of symbolism to exactly what weapons Taipei requests and what it actually purchases if those requests are approved.
“Getting the package right will take considerable technical and diplomatic skill,” he said.
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) on Friday laid out the Cabinet’s updated policy agenda and recapped the government’s achievements ahead of the one-year anniversary of President William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration. Cho said the government had made progress across a range of areas, including rebuilding Hualien, cracking down on fraud, improving pedestrian safety and promoting economic growth. “I hope the public will not have the impression that the Cabinet only asked the legislature to reconsider a bunch of legal amendments,” Cho said, calling the moves “necessary” to protect constitutional governance and the public’s interest. The Cabinet would work toward achieving its “1+7” plan, he said. The
Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) hosted a dinner in Taipei last night with key Taiwanese suppliers to celebrate the successful mass production of the company’s new Blackwell AI systems. Speaking to the media earlier yesterday, Huang thanked Nvidia’s Taiwanese partners for their contributions to the company’s ecosystem, while also sharing his plans to meet with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) founder Morris Chang (張忠謀). In response to rumors that Nvidia will launch a downgraded Hopper H20 chip for China in July, Huang dismissed the reports, saying, “That is not true.” He clarified that there