The US Congress has jettisoned legislative proposals to improve ties between US and Taiwanese military leaders along with a plan to sanction countries that sell China sensitive arms which could be used to attack Taiwan.
The measures were the victims of a last-minute rush by Congress to adjourn this year's session before Christmas in the face of a large number of contentious "must-pass" bills still on the House and Senate agendas.
In May, the House had adopted the measures as part of an omnibus bill that authorizes programs for the US armed forces for next year. But the Senate last month rejected the House bill and substituted its own version, which lacked the measures.
Early on Monday, toward the end of an all-night session to rush through legislation, the House agreed to abandon the China and Taiwan provisions, and accepted the Senate bill.
The Senate was scheduled to vote on the bill yesterday.
One scuttled provision would have created a program for top-level military exchanges between Taiwan and the US aimed at improving Taiwan's defenses against China, especially against potential submarine and missile attacks. Such meetings would be held in both Washington and Taipei, and would break the taboo against high-level US military and civilian Pentagon officials visiting Taiwan.
Another provision would have included Taipei on the list of foreign sites that newly promoted senior military officers visit as part of an educational exchange program.
A third measure would have imposed sanctions against foreign companies and countries supplying sensitive arms to China by prohibiting them from selling weapons or military services to the US for five years.
However, the Senate did insert a provision, which the House went along with, that calls on US President George W. Bush to establish a comprehensive plan to deal with China's emerging strength, including its increasing ability to both attack Taiwan and to prevent the US military from coming to Taiwan's aid in case of military action.
That provision is expected to be in the final bill that gets to the president's desk.
Taiwan supporters were not surprised by the House's decision to accept the Senate's version of the bill. The action follows the pattern of recent years, in which the House has inserted pro-Taiwan provisions that the Senate has thrown out.
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