A concurrent resolution reaffirming the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) and the “six assurances” as cornerstones of US-Taiwan relations was on Thursday introduced to the US Senate on the eve of president-elect Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) inauguration yesterday.
The resolution was passed by the US House of Representatives earlier this week.
Senators Marco Rubio and Bob Menendez — senior members of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee — introduced the resolution cosponsored by senators Jim Inhofe, Sherrod Brown and Cory Gardner.
Menendez said the resolution reaffirmed the importance of strong bilateral relations with Taiwan and underscored the US Senate’s unwavering support for the TRA.
“As historic progress continues to be made to improve Taiwan-China relations, we must ensure that Taiwan remains both a close friend to the US and a beacon of democracy and freedom in the Asia-Pacific region,” Menendez said.
“The relationship between the US and Taiwan grows stronger and stronger as each year passes,” Rubio said. “We have stood with Taiwan in the face of tyranny and watched as its people overcame fear to live in peace.”
“The ‘six assurances’ that [former US] president Ronald Reagan put in place more than 34 years ago are as valid today as they were in 1982,” he said.
Rubio said the resolution was especially timely, because it came as Taiwan was celebrating the inauguration of Tsai.
“Another peaceful transfer of power in Taiwan is just the latest symbol of what an open, vibrant society Taiwan has become,” he said.
Rubio, a former candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, said he looked forward to working with Tsai “to deepen the relationship between Taiwan and the US and take it to new levels.”
“We must be watchful in the coming weeks and months for any attempts by Beijing to subvert Taiwan’s triumph of democracy to advance its own agenda,” he said.
“That is why it is important that we speak with one voice as a Congress to reaffirm the importance of the ‘six assurances’ to our relationship for the years to come,” Rubio added
LOW RISK: Most nations do not extradite people accused of political crimes, and the UN says extradition can only happen if the act is a crime in both countries, an official said China yesterday issued wanted notices for two Taiwanese influencers, accusing them of committing “separatist acts” by criticizing Beijing, amid broadening concerns over China’s state-directed transnational repression. The Quanzhou Public Security Bureau in a notice posted online said police are offering a reward of up to 25,000 yuan (US$3,523) for information that could contribute to the investigation or apprehension of pro-Taiwanese independence YouTuber Wen Tzu-yu (溫子渝),who is known as Pa Chiung (八炯) online, and rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源). Wen and Chen are suspected of spreading content that supported secession from China, slandered Chinese policies that benefit Taiwanese and discrimination against Chinese spouses of
ALIGNED THINKING: Taiwan and Japan have a mutual interest in trade, culture and engineering, and can work together for stability, Cho Jung-tai said Taiwan and Japan are two like-minded countries willing to work together to form a “safety barrier” in the Indo-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday said at the opening ceremony of the 35th Taiwan-Japan Modern Engineering and Technology Symposium in Taipei. Taiwan and Japan are close geographically and closer emotionally, he added. Citing the overflowing of a barrier lake in the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) in September, Cho said the submersible water level sensors given by Japan during the disaster helped Taiwan monitor the lake’s water levels more accurately. Japan also provided a lot of vaccines early in the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic,
PROMOTION: Travelers who want a free stopover must book their flights with designated travel agents, such as Lion Travel, Holiday Tours, Cola Tour and Life Tours Air Canada yesterday said it is offering Taiwanese travelers who are headed to North America free stopovers if they transit though airports in Japan and South Korea. The promotion was launched in response to a potential rise in demand for flights to North America in June and July next year, when the US, Canada and Mexico are scheduled to jointly host the FIFA World Cup, Air Canada said. Air Canada offers services to 13 of the 16 host cities of the tournament’s soccer games, including Toronto and Vancouver; Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey in Mexico; Atlanta, Georgia; Boston; Dallas; Houston;
The US approved the possible sale to Taiwan of fighter jet spare and repair parts for US$330 million, the Pentagon said late yesterday, marking the first such potential transaction since US President Donald Trump took office in January. "The proposed sale will improve the recipient's capability to meet current and future threats by maintaining the operational readiness of the recipient's fleet of F-16, C-130," and other aircraft, the Pentagon said in a statement. Trump previously said that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has told him he would not invade Taiwan while the Republican leader is in office. The announcement of the possible arms
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