US senators on Tuesday introduced the Taiwan travel and tourism coordination act, which they said would bolster bilateral travel and cooperation.
The bill, proposed by US senators Marsha Blackburn and Brian Schatz, seeks to establish “robust security screenings for those traveling to the US from Asia, open new markets for American industry, and strengthen the economic partnership between the US and Taiwan,” they said in a statement.
“Travel and tourism play a crucial role in a nation’s economic security,” but Taiwan faces “pressure and coercion from the Chinese Communist Party [CCP]” in this sector, the statement said.
Photo: EPA-EFE
As Taiwan is a “vital trading partner and ally in the Indo-Pacific region,” the US must “assist our allies in stabilizing their economies and growing their national industries,” it said.
Schatz, who represents Hawaii and is a member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, said that the bill would help “unlock more economic opportunities for the people of Taiwan, Hawaii and our entire country.”
“The CCP’s campaign for global dominance also presents a clear threat to US interests,” Blackburn said.
The US needs to secure the homeland and the act would assist in “achieving enhanced security at foreign airports,” as it requires the federal government to study the feasibility of establishing a “preclearance” facility in Taiwan, she said.
Preclearance is the “strategic stationing of [US] Customs and Border Protection personnel at designated foreign airports to inspect travelers prior to boarding US-bound flights,” the statement said.
The measure would “enhance security, increase collaboration and streamline travel,” it said.
There is currently no preclearance facility in Asia, despite “an annual average of over 4 million travelers from the continent,” it added.
US lawmakers had pushed for Taiwan’s participation in a preclearance program in December 2021.
However, then-minister of foreign affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) in March 2022 said that “the US thought Taiwan was too safe and had to prioritize more dangerous regions.”
Separately, members of the US House of Representatives on Tuesday reintroduced a bill that asks the US Department of State to review guidelines on how the US engages with Taiwan.
US representatives Ann Wagner, Gerry Connolly and Ted Lieu reintroduced the Taiwan assurance implementation act, which passed the House in 2023, but did not make it through the Senate.
The new version of the bill would again require the state department to conduct periodic reviews of its guidelines for engagement with Taiwan and Taiwanese officials, the three lawmakers said in a separate statement.
The reviews must include explanations of how the guidance deepens and expands US-Taiwan relations, and consider that “Taiwan is a democratic partner and a free and open society that respects universal human rights and democratic values,” it said.
They should also “identify opportunities to lift any remaining self-imposed limitations on US-Taiwan engagement and articulate a plan to do so,” it said.
After severing ties with the Republic of China (Taiwan) in 1979, Washington developed guidelines to limit official interactions with Taipei, including barring senior US executive branch officials, including high-ranking military officers, from visiting the nation.
Former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo removed the guidelines at the end of Donald Trump’s first term as US president, but many of the restrictions were put back in place by the administration of former US president Joe Biden.
Wagner said in the statement that “the Taiwan assurance implementation act will deepen the relationship between our countries and will signal to the world that the United States will never kowtow to communist China.”
“Now more than ever, it is imperative for the United States to demonstrate its unwavering support for our friend and ally, Taiwan,” Connolly said.
“This [bill] will allow for a more unified approach in coordinating US-Taiwan relations and strengthen our essential partnership,” Lieu said in the statement.
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