A US Department of State official is scheduled to address an annual conference on defense industry cooperation between Taiwan and the US, the event’s organizers said on Sunday.
Mira Resnick, deputy assistant secretary of state for regional security in the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, is to be the second US State Department official in consecutive years to speak at the annual US-Taiwan Defense Industry Conference in Virginia, the US-Taiwan Business Council said in a news release.
Jedidiah Royal, principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs, is also to speak at the 22nd edition of the defense industry conference, which started on Sunday and ends today, the organizers said.
US-Taiwan Business Council president Rupert Hammond-Chambers said that this year’s conference would be its largest, featuring more than 200 participants from the Taiwanese and US governments, along with defense industry representatives, to discuss bilateral defense cooperation.
In accordance with long-standing practice, Taiwan’s government sent a deputy defense minister to give the keynote address. This year the delegation was being led by Deputy Minister of National Defense General Hsu Yen-pu (徐衍璞).
American Institute in Taiwan Chair Laura Rosenberger and Hammond-Chambers were to provide introductory comments before Hsu’s address, according to the agenda.
The Democratic Progressive Party and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) also traditionally send party representatives to the meeting. For the first time, Taiwan’s third largest party, the Taiwan People’s Party, founded by former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) in 2019, also sent a delegation.
Hammond-Chambers said he is happy to see all three main political parties participate in this year’s conference, which shows they attach great importance to the annual event.
Panelists are to highlight how Taiwanese and US industries can cooperate to provide defense solutions, with discussions focused on how to boost Taiwan’s defense by improving flexibility and enhancing resilience, organizers said.
Since its 2002 debut, the conference has aimed to facilitate engagement between the US defense industry and the Taiwanese and US governments on security matters, they added.
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