The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday thanked the US House of Representatives for advancing the Taiwan International Solidarity Act in a rebuff to Beijing’s claims over the nation.
The bill, which aims to amend the 2019 Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative (TAIPEI) Act, passed the House by a unanimous voice vote on Tuesday.
The legislation would require the US to support Taiwan’s bids to join international organizations as specified under the TAIPEI Act and oppose attempts by Beijing to “resolve Taiwan’s status by distorting the decisions, language, policies or procedures” of such organizations.
Photo: AFP
The bill states that UN Resolution 2758 — which recognized the People’s Republic of China as the sole legitimate government of China in 1971 — does not apply to Taiwan.
“The resolution did not address the issue of representation of Taiwan and its people in the United Nations or any related organizations, nor did the resolution take a position on the relationship between [China] and Taiwan or include any statement pertaining to Taiwan’s sovereignty,” it said.
“The United States opposes any initiative that seeks to change Taiwan’s status without the consent of the [Taiwanese] people,” the bill added.
Photo: CNA
The bill must still be approved by the US Senate, and then signed by US President Joe Biden before it can become law.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a news release that Taipei welcomed the US House’s advancement of a bill that could help counter China’s malign efforts to thwart Taiwan’s participation in international organizations.
Beijing over the past decades has repeatedly invoked Resolution 2758 as a means to prevent Taiwan from participating in and contributing to the international community in a distortion of the resolution’s purpose, which was concerned solely with China’s legal representation, it said.
The Chinese Communist Party’s “one China” principle is based on Beijing’s false interpretation of the resolution and the lies it made to the international community, the ministry added.
The ministry thanked the friends of Taiwan across the political divide in the US Congress, saying that Taiwan would continue its collaboration with the US and other like-minded countries in overcoming shared global challenges.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said the bill was a clear signal to the international community that Resolution 2758 should not be applied to Taiwan.
Promoting this fact would allow the nation to create a legal foundation for Taiwan to achieve membership in international organizations and normal interactions with global political actors, he said.
The US House’s passage of the Taiwan International Solidarity Act shows that an unprecedented level of support for the nation’s bid to join the UN exists in Washington, DPP Legislator Chao Tien-lin (趙天麟) said.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Charles Chen (陳以信) said the bill’s importance should not be overplayed, as the Taiwan-US relationship continues to be largely governed by the same legal framework as before.
Although the importance of the bill is more symbolic than substantial, the KMT still welcomes and appreciates the US Congress’ expressions of goodwill, Chen said.
In his National Day Rally speech on Sunday, Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) quoted the Taiwanese song One Small Umbrella (一支小雨傘) to describe his nation’s situation. Wong’s use of such a song shows Singapore’s familiarity with Taiwan’s culture and is a perfect reflection of exchanges between the two nations, Representative to Singapore Tung Chen-yuan (童振源) said yesterday in a post on Facebook. Wong quoted the song, saying: “As the rain gets heavier, I will take care of you, and you,” in Mandarin, using it as a metaphor for Singaporeans coming together to face challenges. Other Singaporean politicians have also used Taiwanese songs
NORTHERN STRIKE: Taiwanese military personnel have been training ‘in strategic and tactical battle operations’ in Michigan, a former US diplomat said More than 500 Taiwanese troops participated in this year’s Northern Strike military exercise held at Lake Michigan by the US, a Pentagon-run news outlet reported yesterday. The Michigan National Guard-sponsored drill involved 7,500 military personnel from 36 nations and territories around the world, the Stars and Stripes said. This year’s edition of Northern Strike, which concluded on Sunday, simulated a war in the Indo-Pacific region in a departure from its traditional European focus, it said. The change indicated a greater shift in the US armed forces’ attention to a potential conflict in Asia, it added. Citing a briefing by a Michigan National Guard senior
CHIPMAKING INVESTMENT: J.W. Kuo told legislators that Department of Investment Review approval would be needed were Washington to seek a TSMC board seat Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) yesterday said he received information about a possible US government investment in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and an assessment of the possible effect on the firm requires further discussion. If the US were to invest in TSMC, the plan would need to be reviewed by the Department of Investment Review, Kuo told reporters ahead of a hearing of the legislature’s Economics Committee. Kuo’s remarks came after US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Tuesday said that the US government is looking into the federal government taking equity stakes in computer chip manufacturers that
US President Donald Trump on Friday said that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) told him China would not invade Taiwan while Trump is in office. Trump made the remarks in an interview with Fox News, ahead of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. “I will tell you, you know, you have a very similar thing with President Xi of China and Taiwan, but I don’t believe there’s any way it’s going to happen as long as I’m here. We’ll see,” Trump said during an interview on Fox News’ Special Report. “He told me: ‘I will never do
RSS