The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year.
The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC.
Photo: AP
The act includes US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending.
Before the vote, US Representative Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin, who proposed the amendment, urged support from his colleagues.
He said that the House had approved a similar measure in the previous Congress as part of the State Department Appropriations bill and that this new amendment aims to extend the policy to the defense department.
Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as lawmakers in the House recognize that “Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China, even for a single day.”
The US lawmaker said Taiwanese choose their leaders, maintain their armed forces, conduct their foreign policy and manage their trade agreements with other nations.
“By every measure, Taiwan is a sovereign, democratic and independent nation — and any claims to the contrary are simply false,” Tiffany said.
Since the 1970s, Washington’s so-called “one China” policy has acknowledged Beijing’s unsubstantiated claims over Taiwan, Tiffany added.
He called it “an antiquated and dishonest policy — one that we should abandon.”
Although Tiffany said the “Honest Maps” amendment would not end the misguided “one China” policy, he emphasized that it would ensure US maps reflect the reality that “China is China, and Taiwan is Taiwan.”
The Department of Defense Appropriations Act also included US$500 million in aid for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative (TSCI).
In a statement dated Tuesday last week, the US Office of Management and Budget under the Executive Office of the President said it appreciated the House Appropriations Committee’s inclusion of US$500 million for the initiative.
The US$500 million is crucial to the defense department’s efforts to enhance Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities, the office said.
“The administration strongly urges full consideration of the fiscal 2026 budget request of US$1 billion for TSCI, as Taiwan’s ability to credibly defend itself is vital for deterrence in the Indo-Pacific and important for safeguarding United States personnel in the event of a contingency,” the office said.
The House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party told the Central News Agency that the House discussed the TSCI after hearing testimony from retired US Navy rear admiral Mark Montgomery in May titled “Deterrence Amid Rising Tensions: Preventing CCP Aggression on Taiwan.”
In his testimony, Montgomery urged the Congress to increase financial aid to Taiwan to strengthen its defense, adding that Taiwan is too small to face China alone since Beijing’s GDP is 23 times larger than Taipei’s.
Montgomery said defense aid to Taiwan can be increased through Foreign Military Financing, Presidential Drawdown Authorities and the TSCI, which allow the US to provide equipment to Taiwan.
Montgomery recommended US$300 million for the first year of the TSCI and urged Congress to approve US$1 billion for next year and beyond.
A key use for this money would be training Taiwan’s troops, including captain’s courses and battalion-level training at US bases in Hawaii and the west coast, Montgomery said.
WARNING: People in coastal areas need to beware of heavy swells and strong winds, and those in mountainous areas should brace for heavy rain, the CWA said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued sea and land warnings for Typhoon Ragasa, forecasting that it would continue to intensify and affect the nation the most today and tomorrow. People in Hualien and Taitung counties, and mountainous areas in Yilan and Pingtung counties, should brace for damage caused by extremely heavy rain brought by the typhoon’s outer rim, as it was upgraded to a super typhoon yesterday morning, the CWA said. As of 5:30pm yesterday, the storm’s center was about 630km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving northwest at 21kph, and its maximum wind speed had reached
MATAIAN RIVER: Rescue operations were ongoing, with officials urging residents to move to higher floors where possible as teams focus first on those at ground level Floodwaters from the overflowing Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) barrier lake swept into Hualien County’s Guangfu Township (光復) yesterday afternoon, leaving hundreds of people trapped and three missing as of press time last night, the Hualien County Fire Bureau said. The waters surged into downtown Guangfu after the riverbank burst at about 2:50pm, carrying mud and debris and submerging streets to rooftop level in some areas. Residents were seen climbing onto vehicles and rooftops to await rescue as thick, silt-laden water inundated the town. The surge destroyed the Mataian Bridge (馬太鞍溪橋) and flooded the Guangfu Railway Station. Rescue operations were launched with support from fire departments
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said that it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Ragasa this morning and a land warning at night as it approached Taiwan. Ragasa intensified from a tropical storm into a typhoon at 8am yesterday, the CWA said, adding that at 2pm, it was about 1,110km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip. The typhoon was moving northwest at 13kph, with sustained winds of up to 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA Web site showed. Forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said that Ragasa was projected to strengthen as it neared the Bashi Channel, with its 200km
PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS: Hualien and Taitung counties declared today a typhoon day, while schools and offices in parts of Kaohsiung and Pingtung counties are also to close Typhoon Ragasa was forecast to hit its peak strength and come closest to Taiwan from yesterday afternoon through today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Taiwan proper could be out of the typhoon’s radius by midday and the sea warning might be lifted tonight, it added. CWA senior weather specialist Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said that Ragasa’s radius had reached the Hengchun Peninsula by 11am yesterday and was expected to hit Taitung County and Kaohsiung by yesterday evening. Ragasa was forecast to move to Taiwan’s southern offshore areas last night and to its southwestern offshore areas early today, she added. As of 8pm last night,