Sun, Jan 23, 2022 page3

• US bill seeks US$3bn for Taiwan’s defense

  • Staff writer, with CNA, Washington
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  US Representative Mike Gallagher on Friday introduced a bill aimed at increasing Taiwan’s asymmetric defense capabilities to protect against China’s military aggression.

  Under the proposed arm Taiwan act of 2021, the US would enhance Taiwan’s defenses against a Chinese invasion by allocating US$3 billion every year for a “Taiwan Security Assistance Initiative,” Gallagher said in a statement.

  The act would make Taiwan’s progress in preparing its military and fielding weapons required to deter an attack by China a condition for conventional arms sales to the nation, he said.

  

  Taiwanese soldiers demonstrate their combat readiness during a visit by President Tsai Ing-wen at a military base in Taitung on Friday.

  Photo: Ritchie B. Tongo, EPA-EFE

  “General Secretary [Chinese President] Xi Jinping (習近平) has made unification of Taiwan with the mainland, by force if necessary, a key part of his legacy, and the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] is only growing more aggressive watching the [US President Joe] Biden Administration’s weakness in Afghanistan, Ukraine and Iran,” Gallagher said.

  The US “Congress needs to step up to restore deterrence before it is too late. I am proud to join [US] Senator [Josh] Hawley in introducing the arm Taiwan act to provide Taiwan with the necessary resources and weapons to defeat an attempted invasion,” Gallagher added.

  In November last year, Hawley introduced an identical bill.

  Under the act, the US secretary of defense would be tasked with establishing the Taiwan Security Assistance Initiative to accelerate the nation’s deployment of asymmetric defense capabilities necessary to delay, degrade and deny a Chinese invasion.

  The act would authorize the US Department of Defense to appropriate US$3 billion each fiscal year from next year through 2027 to assist Taiwan.

  Funding would be conditional on the annual certification that Taiwan was matching US investments in asymmetric defenses, increasing defense spending, acquiring asymmetric defense capabilities as quickly as possible and implementing defense reforms, especially with regard to reserve forces, Gallagher said.

  “If the People’s Republic of China were to invade and seize control of Taiwan, it would deal a severe blow to United States interests by destroying one of the world’s leading democracies, casting doubt on the ability and resolve of the United States to uphold its security commitments; incentivizing other countries in the Indo-Pacific region to bandwagon with the People’s Republic of China; and facilitating the formation of a regional order dominated by the People’s Republic of China,” the bill reads.
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