The US’ National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) enhances US support for Taiwan and counters China’s misrepresentation of UN Resolution 2758, the Formosan Association for Public Affairs (FAPA) said in a statement on Tuesday.
The Washington-based Taiwanese nonprofit promotes cooperation between Taiwan and the US.
US President Joe Biden on Monday signed the NDAA for the 2025 fiscal year into law. The bill authorized US$895 billion for the US Department of Defense, including up to US$300 million for measures that promote Taiwan-US security cooperation and enhance Taiwan’s defense capabilities.
Photo: AFP
Among the NDAA provisions favorable to Taiwan was the Building Options for the Lasting Security of Taiwan through European Resolve Act, aimed at enhancing US-Europe cooperation to bolster Taiwan’s security and international presence, the FAPA said.
The bill also encourages the US and Europe to stress the differences between their “one China” policies and that of Beijing’s “one China principle,” and refute Beijing’s claims that UN Resolution 2758 recognizes its territorial claims over Taiwan, the group said.
It applauded the “critical legislation to counter the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) groundless territorial claims over Taiwan, and ensure Taiwan’s continued freedom and independence amid China’s increasing aggression toward Taiwan,” the statement said.
The “FAPA strongly urges the incoming [US president-elect] Donald Trump administration to prioritize and intensify efforts to combat the PRC’s baseless territorial claims and its escalating aggression toward Taiwan,” FAPA president Kao Su-mei (林素梅) said in the statement.
However, the NDAA’s provisions only authorize Pentagon programs, but the actual funding has to be covered in a separate spending bill for the fiscal year ending in September next year, Reuters reported, indicating that funding for all of the measures is not guaranteed.
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