Members of the US House of Representatives on Tuesday reintroduced a bill to support Taiwan’s international space and counter coercion by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
The Taiwan Allies Fund Act was reintroduced by US Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, ranking member of the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the US and the CCP, and other representative from across party lines, including John Moolenaar, Gregory Meeks and Ted Lieu (劉雲平), the committee said in a statement.
A companion bill in the US Senate is being led by US senators Chris van Hollen, John Curtis and Andy Kim.
Photo: AFP
Krishnamoorthi late last month announced his intention to reintroduce the bill, which would authorize US$120 million from next year to 2028 to provide assistance to Taiwan’s official and unofficial partners subjected to coercion and pressure from the CCP.
The appropriations would be for use in countries that meet criteria, including those that “maintain official relations with Taiwan or have meaningfully strengthened unofficial relations with Taiwan” and “have been subject to coercion or pressure by the People’s Republic of China [PRC] due to their relations with Taiwan.”
A country that qualifies for the funding may not receive more than US$5 million during any fiscal year, the bill says.
The money would be to support activities such as building “the capacity and resilience of civil society, media and other non-governmental organizations in countering the influence and propaganda of the PRC,” it says.
To maximize cost efficiency and eliminate duplication, the bill says that the US secretary of state should work with the director of the American Institute in Taiwan to ensure coordination with parties in Taiwan.
“China wants the world to turn a blind eye to its nefarious ambitions with Taiwan,” Curtis was quoted as saying in the statement.
“We cannot allow nations to fall prey to China’s pressure campaigns, which is why we’ve introduced bipartisan legislation to counter China’s attempts to silence Taiwan’s allies,” he said.
“Our bill helps countries stand strong in the face of the CCP and strengthen their ties with Taiwan,” he said.
The Taiwan Allies Fund Act was cosponsored by Krishnamoorthi last year, but it was not enacted after stalling in the Senate.
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