Taiwan welcomed yesterday the passing of a proposed bill by a key US House of Representatives subcommittee to bolster US-Taiwan military ties.
After two hours of debate, the House International Relations Committee passed an amended version of the Taiwan Security Enhancement Act, put forth by the committee's Republican chairman, Representative Benjamin Gilman. The vote was passed with a wide margin of 32 votes to six.
"We thank those in public office for their support and concern for Taiwan," Minister of National Defense Tang Fei (
Tang, when asked if he had any criticisms, said only that it was an internal matter for the US and that he would rather not get involved.
During Tuesday's "mark-up" -- where the act is amended before moving onto the House's full committee -- a section of the original bill was removed that specified the sale of advanced weapons systems to Taiwan.
The original bill had included a section authorizing the president to provide -- in effect telling the Pentagon to sell -- Taiwan equipment including among other systems, AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles, diesel submarines and naval anti-missile systems including Aegis destroyers.
Tang said the removal was nothing to be overly concerned about.
"This does not affect our ability to obtain weapons systems through regular channels," he said.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Henry Chen (
In addition to seeking to develop further military relations between Taiwan and the US, the bill also proposes greater clarity for the support of Taiwan and its people.
"It is in the national interest of the United States to eliminate ambiguity and convey with clarity continued United States support for Taiwan, its people, and their ability to maintain their democracy free from coercion," the bill states.
However, the Clinton administration would rather that the ambiguity remain, said one foreign ministry official who wished to remain anonymous.
The foreign ministry has received pressure from the US executive branch, encouraging Taiwan to ease its lobbying efforts in Washington, he said.
"In the past it was the US who supported Taiwan's democracy and now the one who wants Taiwan to shut up is the United States," the official said.
Just before passage of the bill by the subcommittee, DPP lawmaker Parris Chang (
Chang said he was pleased that the bill had passed this stage because it could give a boost to Taiwan's self-defense interests.
In addition to calling for clear support of Taiwan's democratic accomplishments the bill also seeks to improve US-Taiwan military relations.
The measures include: the increase of technical staff at the American Institute in Taiwan, annual reports by the President -- classified and unclassified -- following arms talks between both sides and clear explanations of which weapons systems were requested, evaluation of Taiwan's self-defense capability and report of Taiwan's abilities, combined training and personnel exchange programs for "senior officers," as well as secure direct communications between US and Taiwan armed forces.
The version of the act passed by the committee also contained an added section which called on the Secretary of Defense to prepare a report to Congress within six months, updated when necessary, regarding the ability of the US to respond to "a major contingency in the Asia Pacific region where US interests on Taiwan are at risk." The report would have to detail what US strategic objectives were involved and how the US expected to be able to achieve them.
Some critics within the US government have cast doubt on whether the bill would pass, but Chang was optimistic that it could move forward and not be stopped in Congress or vetoed by the president.
"For defense purposes there are no reasons to object to the bill," Chang said.
By removing more controversial portions of the bill, the subcommittee has made the bill compelling for the Clinton administration prior to next year's US presidential elections, Chang added.
"If Clinton vetoes the bill with elections approaching he will have a considerable political price to pay," he said.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS