The US Senate last week passed the PORCUPINE Act to speed up US defense sales and facilitate the transfer of military equipment from US allies to Taiwan.
The act, which amends the Arms Export Control Act and is formally called the Providing Our Regional Companions Upgraded Protection in Nefarious Environments Act, cleared the Senate by unanimous consent on Thursday last week.
It next moves to the US House of Representatives for consideration. If passed by the House, it would be sent to the president for promulgation.
Photo: AFP
Under the legislation, the Arms Export Control Act would include Taiwan among those eligible for shorter certification and congressional notification periods for arms sales, while also expediting licensing procedures for allies seeking to transfer military equipment to Taiwan.
Taiwan would receive treatment comparable to that of NATO members, as well as Australia, Israel, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea — collectively referred to as “NATO Plus.”
The act also requires the US secretary of state to determine within 90 days of the bill’s final passage if an expedited decisionmaking process should be created to govern third party transfers of weapons to Taiwan.
The Formosan Association for Public Affairs, a Washington-based non-governmental Taiwan advocacy group, welcomed the Senate’s passage of the bill.
The group said in a statement on Sunday that the bill “removes critical bureaucratic hurdles to arming Taiwan, ensuring Taiwan maintains the capabilities necessary to deter invasion” by China.
The bill would also create a mechanism to facilitate third-party transfers of US-made defense equipment from NATO and NATO Plus countries, thereby expanding the coalition able to support Taiwan, it said.
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
The Chien Feng IV (勁蜂, Mighty Hornet) loitering munition is on track to enter flight tests next month in connection with potential adoption by Taiwanese and US armed forces, a government source said yesterday. The kamikaze drone, which boasts a range of 1,000km, debuted at the Taipei Aerospace and Defense Technology Exhibition in September, the official said on condition of anonymity. The Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology and US-based Kratos Defense jointly developed the platform by leveraging the engine and airframe of the latter’s MQM-178 Firejet target drone, they said. The uncrewed aerial vehicle is designed to utilize an artificial intelligence computer
Renewed border fighting between Thailand and Cambodia showed no signs of abating yesterday, leaving hundreds of thousands of displaced people in both countries living in strained conditions as more flooded into temporary shelters. Reporters on the Thai side of the border heard sounds of outgoing, indirect fire yesterday. About 400,000 people have been evacuated from affected areas in Thailand and about 700 schools closed while fighting was ongoing in four border provinces, said Thai Rear Admiral Surasant Kongsiri, a spokesman for the military. Cambodia evacuated more than 127,000 villagers and closed hundreds of schools, the Thai Ministry of Defense said. Thailand’s military announced that
CABINET APPROVAL: People seeking assisted reproduction must be assessed to determine whether they would be adequate parents, the planned changes say Proposed amendments to the Assisted Reproduction Act (人工生殖法) advanced yesterday by the Executive Yuan would grant married lesbian couples and single women access to legal assisted reproductive services. The proposed revisions are “based on the fundamental principle of respecting women’s reproductive autonomy,” Cabinet spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) quoted Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君), who presided over a Cabinet meeting earlier yesterday, as saying at the briefing. The draft amendment would be submitted to the legislature for review. The Ministry of Health and Welfare, which proposed the amendments, said that experts on children’s rights, gender equality, law and medicine attended cross-disciplinary meetings, adding that
RSS