Fri, Oct 03, 2025 page2

• US Senate to review four bills backing Taiwan

  • By Hollie Younger / Staff writer
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  The US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is on Oct. 22 scheduled to hold a hearing to review a series of bills, four of which are in support of Taiwan, the committee’s Web site says.

  The Providing our Regional Companions Upgraded Protection in Nefarious Environments Act, or PORCUPINE Act, would affect US and NATO-plus members’ arms sales to Taiwan; the Taiwan International Solidarity Act would oppose China from distorting Taiwan’s claims to sovereignty; the Deter PRC [People’s Republic of China] Aggression Against Taiwan Act would prepare economic sanctions against the PRC in the event of aggression against Taiwan; and the United States-Taiwan Partnership in the Americas Act would support Taiwan’s diplomatic allies in Latin America and the Caribbean.

  The bills are to undergo line-by-line review and a vote by the committee before being sent to the full Senate for consideration.

  

  Demonstrators gather near the US Capitol Building during a protest in Washington on April 5.

  Photo: Bloomberg

  The Senate and the US House of Representatives must pass identical versions of a bill before it can be signed into law by the US president.

  The PORCUPINE Act would expedite sales of arms to Taiwan by placing it on the same list as NATO Plus members, including Japan and Australia.

  As an amendment to the Arms Export Control Act, the bill would place Taiwan on the list of countries eligible for shorter certification and notification periods, expedite licenses and facilitate the transfer of military equipment.

  “The PORCUPINE Act will make it easier for us to send arms to Taiwan, quicker, while also creating a process for our closest allies and partners to do the same,” said US Senator Pete Ricketts, who introduced the bill.

  The US has a US$21 billion backlog in arms sales to Taiwan, he said.

  If passed, the act would require the US secretary of state to establish an expedited decisionmaking process for third-party transfers of defense articles and services from NATO member countries to “NATO Plus” members and Taiwan, it said.

  It would also shorten the time frame to formally notify the US Congress of arms sales and raise the threshold for the amount requiring notification.

  Under the act, the president would need to formally notify Congress 30 days before issuing a Letter of Offer and Acceptance for a Foreign Military Sales-administered sale, enhancement or upgrading of major defense equipment valued at US$14 million or more.

  Meanwhile, the Taiwan International Solidarity Act would require the US to “oppose any attempts by the [PRC] to resolve Taiwan’s status by distorting the decisions, language, policies or procedures of any such organization.”

  UN Resolution 2758 of 1971, which declared the PRC as the only lawful representative of China at the UN, did not take a position on cross-strait relations nor did it address the issue of Taiwan’s representation, the bill states.

  “The [US] opposes any initiative that seeks to change Taiwan’s status without the consent of the people of Taiwan,” it says.

  The Deter PRC Aggression Against Taiwan Act would “develop economic tools” and prepare the US to take immediate action to impose sanctions on the PRC if it were to take military or non-military action against Taiwan.

  The act would allow the US to act in the event of PRC attempts to overthrow or dismantle the Taiwanese government, occupy any Taiwanese territory, violate Taiwan’s territorial integrity or take any significant military action, such as cyberattacks, a naval blockade or the seizure of outlying islands.

  It would require a PRC sanctions task force to leverage sanctions and other economic tools targeting the PRC’s financial and industrial sectors, with annual reports and coordination with allies to maximize impact and mitigate economic fallout.

  Under the act, the US and its allies would also coordinate actions to provide economic support to Taiwan and other countries threatened by the PRC.

  Finally, the United States-Taiwan Partnership in the Americas Act would support the seven countries in Latin America and the Caribbean that maintain official diplomatic relations with Taiwan, and counter efforts by the PRC to sever such ties.

  The US “has an interest in ensuring countries in Latin America and the Caribbean can make sovereign foreign policy decisions free from coercion or financial manipulation by the [PRC],” the bill states.

  The act would also “deepen coordination with Taiwan on its development and economic engagement in the Western Hemisphere,” it states.
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