US lawmakers on Friday introduced the Taiwan Fellowship Act to help US federal government officials gain a better understanding of Taiwan, said US Senator Edward Markey, one of the lawmakers who introduced the proposed legislation.
The act is modeled after the 1994 Mansfield Fellowship Program between the US and Japan, Markey said in a statement.
It would provide federal government employees with a two-year fellowship as part of an exchange program to allow them to learn, live and work in Taiwan, he said.
Photo: AFP
The bill was introduced to both chambers of the US Congress by Markey, US Senator Marco Rubio and US representatives Ted Yoho and Ami Bera.
Markey said that when participants concluded an exchange program and returned to the federal government, they would be better positioned to advance US values and interests in the Indo-Pacific region by taking advantage of the special emphasis on bolstering Washington’s strategic partnership with Taiwan.
“The US strategic partnership with Taiwan’s vibrant democracy of 23 million people continues to grow from engagement and cooperation in areas such as trade, human rights and the rule of law, security, and battling a global pandemic,” Markey said in the statement.
“Amidst China’s concerted campaign to isolate Taiwan on the global stage, an exchange of our most qualified public servants to the island nation of Taiwan is a visible demonstration of our unwavering commitment to Taiwan,” he said.
The proposed legislation reiterates the US’ commitment in the Taiwan Relations Act, which affirms Washington’s policy “to preserve and promote extensive, close, and friendly commercial, cultural and other relations between the people of the United States and the people of Taiwan,” the Taiwan Fellowship Act says.
Moreover, the bill is consistent with the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act, emphasizing that “the United States has grown its strategic partnership with Taiwan’s vibrant democracy of 23,000,000 people.”
In the statement, Yoho said that the Taiwan Fellowship Act is a long overdue investment by Washington to support the professional development of Taiwan experts in the US federal government.
Bera said that the US and Taiwan have developed a strong relationship and he believes that the bill would enhance bilateral ties by allowing federal government officials to equip themselves with a stronger understanding of the Indo-Pacific region so that they can better inform US policymaking when they return home.
CIVIL DEFENSE: More reservists in alternative service would help establish a sound civil defense system for use in wartime and during natural disasters, Kuma Academy’s CEO said While a total of 120,000 reservists are expected to be called up for alternative reserve drills this year, compared with the 6,505 drilled last year, the number has been revised to 58,000 due to a postponed training date, Deputy Minster of the Interior Ma Shih-yuan (馬士元) said. In principle, the ministry still aims to call up 120,000 reservists for alternative reserve drills next year, he said, but the actual number would not be decided later until after this year’s evaluation. The increase follows a Legislative Yuan request that the Ministry of the Interior address low recruitment rates, which it made while reviewing
DETERRENCE: Along with US$500 million in military aid and up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees, the bill would allocate US$400 million to countering PRC influence The US House of Representatives on Friday approved an appropriations bill for fiscal year 2025 that includes US$500 million in military aid for Taiwan. The legislation, which authorizes funding for the US Department of State, US foreign operations and related programs for next year, passed 212-200 in the Republican-led House. The bill stipulates that the US would provide no less than US$500 million in foreign military financing for Taiwan to enhance deterrence across the Taiwan Strait, and offer Taipei up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees for the same purpose. The funding would be made available under the US’ Foreign Military
WARNING: China has stepped up harassment of foreign vessels after its new regulation took effect last month, an official said, citing an incident in the Diaoyutai Islands The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday linked China’s seizure of a Taiwanese fishing vessel illegally operating in its territorial waters to Beijing’s new regulation authorizing the China Coast Guard to seize boats in waters it claims. Chinese officials boarded and then seized a Taiwanese fishing vessel operating near China’s coast close to Kinmen County late on Tuesday and took it to a Chinese port, the CGA said. The Penghu-registered squid fishing vessel Da Jin Man No. 88 (大進滿88) was boarded and seized by China Coast Guard east-northeast of Liaoluo Bay (料羅灣), 17.5 nautical miles (32.4km) from Taiwan’s restricted waters off Kinmen,
As eight basketball-playing international students appealed to the Taiwanese basketball industry after they were excluded from the draft of an upcoming new league merging the P.League+ and the T1 League, the new league’s preparatory committee spokesperson Chang Shu-jen (張樹人) yesterday said the committee would tomorrow discuss the supplementary measures and whether the international students can join the draft. The students on Tuesday called for support on their right to play in the upcoming new league, after a merger involving the two leagues impacted their eligibility for the draft. The international players from the University Basketball Association (UBA), led by first pick prospect