A new bipartisan bill calling on the Pentagon to provide a detailed report on the cross-strait balance of maritime power has been introduced into the US Congress.
The Asia-Pacific Region Priority Act contains three major sections and 14 specific recommendations aimed at enhancing the US’ focus, understanding and capabilities for “sustaining peace and prosperity” in the region.
The recommendation concerning Taiwan is in a section on security trends and would require an analysis of cross-strait naval forces.
A Congressional source who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak on the subject said that if the bill passes, it could emphasize Taiwan’s need for diesel submarines.
“Any report on the balance of naval power in the Taiwan Strait will highlight Taiwan’s lack of submarines,” he said, adding that this could increase congressional support for helping Taiwan obtain diesel submarines, which are no longer made in the US.
“We will have the [US] Department of Defense submit a report on the cross-strait balance of maritime forces between China and Taiwan and we will encourage an annual report of the Chinese military to include activities of the State Oceanic Administration because the Chinese are now incorporating many of their activities with their coast guard,” Seapower subcommittee chairman Representative J. Randy Forbes said.
Forbes said that new analysis was necessary to carry the US’ defensive strategy into the next decade.
Forbes said the bill called for number of studies — including the Taiwan maritime balance with China — because they had not yet been done comprehensively.
Asked why the Chinese coast guard would be included in the maritime balance, Forbes said: “Oftentimes when you talk about the Chinese military and expenditures, that’s only a fraction of what they’re actually spending.
“If you look at recent activities they’ve had, they’ve started incorporating their coast guard. We at least need an assessment of that so we know what the coast guard is doing and how they’re doing it. We think they have been changing how they’ve utilized their coast guard,” he said.
The new bill supports greater US focus on the Asia-Pacific, condemns coercive attempts to handle maritime disputes, reaffirms commitment to the US-Japan alliance and asks for a report on US-Korea security and trade cooperation.
It also calls for a study of Chinese naval modernization, asks the Pentagon to establish an office to oversee unmanned defense systems and directs the US Secretary of Defense to identify opportunities for increasing missile defense cooperation with allies.
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off Taitung County at 1:09pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 53km northeast of Taitung County Hall at a depth of 12.5km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Taitung County and Hualien County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Nantou County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County, Kaohsiung and Tainan, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage following the quake.
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