US Representative Scott Perry on Thursday called on the US Congress to designate the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) an embassy and grant similar recognition to Taiwan’s representative offices in Washington to bolster ties between the nations amid rising pressure from China.
Perry made the comments during a virtual meeting of the US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and Nonproliferation.
In December last year he jointly introduced the Taiwan envoy act, which would place the AIT’s director on the same level as an ambassador, a move that would require the US Senate’s approval, Perry said.
By the same logic, the House should consider legislation designating the AIT as the US embassy in Taiwan, and recognize the Taiwan Economic and Cultural Office as Taiwan’s embassy in the US, he said.
Such a move would also allow Representative to the US Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) to be referred to as ambassador, he said.
During the hearing, US Representative Ted Yoho encouraged the US to act with greater urgency and resolve to counter the threat that China poses to Taiwan, which he said has increased the likelihood of military conflict in the area.
While neither the US nor China seek bloodshed, “miscommunications and miscalculations” could potentially invite conflict, unless the US embraces “a new strategic clarity” regarding its position on Taiwan, Yoho said.
For those reasons, he introduced the Taiwan invasion prevention act this year, which would authorize the US president to defend Taiwan militarily in the event of an attack by China, he said.
Yoho said that the bill would not be passed in this legislative session, but there was interest in reintroducing it next year.
Meanwhile, at a virtual forum on Thursday, Project 2049 Institute founder Randall Schriver spoke of Taiwan’s growing strategic importance in the Indo-Pacific region.
Schriver, a former US assistant secretary of defense for Asia, said that Taiwan has become “a modern-day Fulda Gap” in the competition between the US and China, referring to a region in Germany that emerged as a strategic flashpoint during the Cold War.
The US administration has recognized this and has therefore adopted a more “competitive posture” toward China, while upgrading ties with Taiwan through frequent arms sales, defense cooperation and high-level official visits, he said.
US president-elect Joe Biden should try to “sustain the momentum” of these activities in ways that support Taiwan’s ability to “maintain its de facto status as an independent democracy,” Schriver said.
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