US Representative Pat Harrigan yesterday introduced the Taiwan Energy Security and Anti-Embargo Act of 2026, saying it would ensure “Taiwan isn’t left vulnerable to supply shocks, coercion by the Chinese Communist Party [CCP], or external geopolitical turmoil.”
“Energy is leverage,” Harrigan, a Republican, was quoted as saying in a statement from his office. “Beijing knows exactly where Taiwan is weakest — and global events today, from strikes in the Middle East to threats at chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz, underscore that energy vulnerability is national security vulnerability.”
The bill would authorize the creation of a joint Taiwan-US energy security center to facilitate academic collaboration on energy security and mandate that the National Academy of Sciences report to the US Congress on ways to increase liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to Taiwan.
Photo: CNA
It would also authorize the US departments of commerce, defense, energy and state to promote US energy exports to Taiwan, and help Taiwan diversify and protect its energy infrastructure and supply.
The bill would “harden a critical weak point in the Indo-Pacific balance of power: Taiwan’s energy dependence,” the statement said.
Prioritizing US LNG exports to Taiwan would reduce hostile powers’ leverage over Taiwan’s energy supply, it said.
Enhancing Taiwan-US cooperation on energy security would also help protect Taiwan’s energy grids and storage systems from different forms of attack, it added.
The bill further calls for bilateral efforts to develop advanced nuclear technologies, such as small modular reactors, to provide “reliable baseload power less susceptible to external disruptions,” the statement said.
The bill would expand the US Maritime Administration’s authority to ensure that vessels “transporting critical energy and vital goods to Taiwan” remain available if commercial operators withdraw from the market due to foreign military threats.
It would have to pass the US House of Representatives and the US Senate, and be signed into law by the US president.
Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) on Monday said that LNG supplies for this month and next month would require the equivalent of 22 shipments.
The ministry has secured 20 ships willing to make the trips and is searching for two more, Kung said, adding that LNG supplies for the two months are guaranteed.
Rumors that LNG supplies might be inadequate are “impossible,” Kung said, adding that Taiwan sources LNG from diverse suppliers, with about one-third coming from Qatar, while the remaining 60 to 70 percent comes from other countries.
SILENCING CRITICS: In addition to blocking Taiwan, China aimed to prevent rights activists from speaking out against authoritarian states, a Cabinet department said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday condemned transnational repression by Beijing after RightsCon, a major digital human rights conference scheduled to be held in Zambia this week, was abruptly canceled due to Chinese pressure over Taiwanese participation. This year’s RightsCon, the world’s largest conference discussing issues “at the intersection of human rights and technology,” was scheduled to take place from tomorrow to Friday in Lusaka, and expected to draw 2,600 in-person attendees from 150 countries, along with 1,100 online participants. However, organizers were forced to cancel the event due to behind-the-scenes pressure from China, the ministry said, expressing its “strongest condemnation”
Taiwan’s economy grew far faster than expected in the first quarter, as booming demand for artificial intelligence (AI) applications drove a surge in exports, spilling over into investment and consumption, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said yesterday. GDP growth was 13.69 percent year-on-year during the January-to-March period, beating the DGBAS’ February forecast by 2.23 percentage points and marking the most robust growth in nearly four decades, DGBAS senior official Chiang Hsin-yi (江心怡) told a news conference in Taipei. The result was powered by exports, which remain the backbone of Taiwan’s economy, Chiang said. Outbound shipments jumped 51.12 percent year-on-year to
DELAYED BUT DETERMINED: The president’s visit highlights Taiwan’s right to international engagement amid regional pressure from China President Willaim Lai (賴清德) yesterday arrived in Eswatini, more than a week after his planned visit to Taiwan’s sole African ally was suspended because of revoked overflight permits. “The visit, originally scheduled for April 22, was postponed due to unforeseen external factors,” Lai wrote on social media. “After several days of careful arrangements by our diplomatic and national security teams, we successfully arrived today.” Lai said he looked forward to further deepening Taiwan-Eswatini relations through closer cooperation in the economy, agriculture, culture and education, as well as advancing the nation’s international partnerships. The president was initially scheduled to arrive in time to celebrate
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) yesterday said the US faced a choice between an “impossible” military operation or a “bad deal” with Tehran, after US President Donald Trump disparaged Iran’s latest peace proposal. Negotiations between the two countries have been deadlocked since a ceasefire came into effect on April 8, with only one round of direct peace talks held so far. Iran’s Tasnim and Fars news agencies reported that Tehran had submitted a 14-point proposal to mediator Pakistan, but Trump was quick to cast doubt on it. “I will soon be reviewing the plan that Iran has just sent to us, but
RSS