Two US representatives on Tuesday introduced a bipartisan bill to the US House of Representatives to help Taiwan develop relations with other countries amid China’s coercive actions designed to isolate the nation.
The draft “Promoting Ties with Taiwan Act,” which was introduced by US representatives Michelle Fischbach and Scott Peters, would require the US government to use its diplomatic influence and reputation to help Taiwan expand connections with nations and partners around the world.
The bill would require the US secretary of state to develop a strategy to help Taiwan foster new ties and trade connections to prevent its isolation, the representatives said.
Photo: AFP
Within 180 days after the passage of the bill, the secretary of state would be required to submit a strategy to the US Congress, including an evaluation of staffing and other resources needed to implement the new policy, the bill says.
Within one year of the submission of the strategy, the secretary of state would have to submit a report to Congress detailing actions taken to carry out the strategy, it says.
The draft has won support from 13 representatives across party lines.
“Taiwan is a valued friend and an important trading partner for the United States. I’m proud to propose concrete steps that our government can take towards encouraging similar relationships between Taiwan and other countries around the world,” Fischbach said.
“Peace in the Taiwan Strait is an enduring security interest for the United States, Taiwan, allies and partners committed to a rules-based international order that promotes the prosperity and interests of all,” Peters said.
Taiwan — which has formal diplomatic ties with 15 nations, and economic and cultural missions in more than 50 nations — is increasingly isolated, as Beijing has succeeded in the past few years in pressuring several countries into switching diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing, the representatives said.
Should Taiwan become isolated and weakened, it would be easy prey for a Chinese invasion, they added.
Lithuania in July announced that it would open a Taiwanese Representative Office in its capital and has since faced intensifying pressure from Beijing, including threats of economic sanctions, they added.
They hoped the bill would build on the foundation of the US’ Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative Act, which was passed by Congress in 2019 and also aims to support Taiwan’s international presence, they said.
The new bill is being reviewed by the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and needs to be approved by the committee and Congress before it can be signed into law by the US president.
In related developments, the Chinese embassy in Lithuania has temporarily suspended consular services until further notice for “technical reasons,” the embassy on Thursday said in a statement on its Web site.
The statement was taken down shortly after publication.
It was published at 1:30pm GMT, a timestamp on the Web site showed, but had disappeared as of 2pm GMT.
The suspension came after Beijing on Sunday downgraded its diplomatic ties with the Baltic state, expressing strong dissatisfaction at the opening of the de facto Lithuanian embassy in Taiwan.
Additional reporting by Reuters
LONG FLIGHT: The jets would be flown by US pilots, with Taiwanese copilots in the two-seat F-16D variant to help familiarize them with the aircraft, the source said The US is expected to fly 10 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 70/72 jets to Taiwan over the coming months to fulfill a long-awaited order of 66 aircraft, a defense official said yesterday. Word that the first batch of the jets would be delivered soon was welcome news to Taiwan, which has become concerned about delays in the delivery of US arms amid rising military tensions with China. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said the initial tranche of the nation’s F-16s are rolling off assembly lines in the US and would be flown under their own power to Taiwan by way
OBJECTS AT SEA: Satellites with synthetic-aperture radar could aid in the detection of small Chinese boats attempting to illegally enter Taiwan, the space agency head said Taiwan aims to send the nation’s first low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite into space in 2027, while the first Formosat-8 and Formosat-9 spacecraft are to be launched in October and 2028 respectively, the National Science and Technology Council said yesterday. The council laid out its space development plan in a report reviewed by members of the legislature’s Education and Culture Committee. Six LEO satellites would be produced in the initial phase, with the first one, the B5G-1A, scheduled to be launched in 2027, the council said in the report. Regarding the second satellite, the B5G-1B, the government plans to work with private contractors
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
MISSION: The Indo-Pacific region is ‘the priority theater,’ where the task of deterrence extends across the entire region, including Taiwan, the US Pacific Fleet commander said The US Navy’s “mission of deterrence” in the Indo-Pacific theater applies to Taiwan, Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Stephen Koehler told the South China Sea Conference on Tuesday. The conference, organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), is an international platform for senior officials and experts from countries with security interests in the region. “The Pacific Fleet’s mission is to deter aggression across the Western Pacific, together with our allies and partners, and to prevail in combat if necessary, Koehler said in the event’s keynote speech. “That mission of deterrence applies regionwide — including the South China Sea and Taiwan,” he