US Senator Jim Banks is visiting Taiwan from today until Thursday, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement today.
Banks, a member of the Senate Committee on Armed Services, is to engage in a series of high-level meetings with senior Taiwanese officials to discuss Taiwan-US relations, regional security, trade and investment, as well as other significant issues of mutual interest, the AIT said.
Born and raised in Columbia City, Indiana, Banks is the son of a factory worker and a nursing-home cook, and the first in his family to attend college, the AIT said.
Photo: CNA
He graduated from Indiana University and later earned a Master of Business Administration from Grace College, it added.
Banks, a US Navy veteran, took a leave of absence from the Indiana State Senate in 2014 and 2015 to deploy to Afghanistan during Operations Enduring Freedom and Freedom’s Sentinel, it said.
Before being elected to the US Senate in 2024, he served in the US House of Representatives and in the Indiana State Senate, it said.
He chaired the Senate Veteran Affairs and the Military Committee when serving in the Indiana State Senate from 2010 to 2016, it said.
He was elected to the US House in 2016, where he served four terms representing Indiana’s third congressional district, it said.
He served as chairman of the Republican Study Committee in the 117th Congress from 2021 to 2023, it said.
Banks has long paid close attention to and supported US-Taiwan security cooperation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a separate statement today.
Upholding the concept of “peace through strength,” he advocates for bolstering Taiwan’s security and deterrence capabilities, the ministry said.
He has also supported efforts to address double taxation between Taiwan and the US, while expressing concern over export controls on advanced artificial intelligence chips and related supply chain security issues, it said.
The trip marks Banks' first visit to the Asia-Pacific region since taking office as a US senator, it said.
With Taiwan chosen as his first stop, it demonstrates the high priority he places on the nation, it said.
Banks is scheduled to meet with President William Lai (賴清德) and other senior officials, with both sides expected to exchange views on key issues including security, economic and trade ties, as well as regional developments, it said.
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