Seven US senators on Thursday introduced a bill to require a report on establishing a US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) preclearance facility at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to expedite travel to the US.
US Senator Josh Hawley introduced the Taiwan Preclearance Act with US senators John Cornyn, Rick Scott, Tommy Tuberville, Mike Braun, Thom Tillis and Cindy Hyde-Smith, all from the Republican Party, as cosponsors.
US House Representative Kat Cammack is introducing companion legislation in the US House of Representatives.
Photo: Bloomberg
The Senate bill would require the secretary of homeland security to submit a report 180 days after the enactment of the act to describe the plan and analyze the feasibility and advisability for the establishment of the program.
The US Department of Homeland Security would also need to assess the effects such a program would have on Taiwan-US trade, the US tourism industry, potential market access to the Indo-Pacific region and collaboration between governments in Taiwan.
A preclearance program at Taoyuan airport would signal Taiwan’s importance to the US and compliance with international aviation rules, the bill says.
“Taiwan is a leading democracy, a vital partner of the United States, and the perfect place for America’s first preclearance facility in the Indo-Pacific,” Hawley said in a statement, adding that the act would strengthen Taiwan-US relations and help maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
By conducting immigration and customs screening at the point of departure, “a preclearance facility in Taiwan would facilitate travel in a major transit point in Asia and help the US prevent inadmissible travelers before they even board the plane,” Tuberville said.
Braun added that Taiwan is an excellent choice for the next CBP program, which would bolster the Taiwan-US alliance through trade, tourism and business.
All of the preclearance facilities abroad are located in North America, the Caribbean, Europe and the Middle East, including Aruba, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, Ireland and the United Arab Emirates, with more than 600 officers stationed at 16 locations, according to the CBP Web site.
In 2012, Taiwan was added to the US Visa Waiver Program, which allows Taiwanese passport holders to enter and remain in the US for up to 90 days without a prior visa application.
In 2017, Taiwan became eligible for the US’ Global Entry Program, which expedites customs clearance.
CHANGING LANDSCAPE: Many of the part-time programs for educators were no longer needed, as many teachers obtain a graduate degree before joining the workforce, experts said Taiwanese universities this year canceled 86 programs, Ministry of Education data showed, with educators attributing the closures to the nation’s low birthrate as well as shifting trends. Fifty-three of the shuttered programs were part-time postgraduate degree programs, about 62 percent of the total, the most in the past five years, the data showed. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) discontinued the most part-time master’s programs, at 16: chemistry, life science, earth science, physics, fine arts, music, special education, health promotion and health education, educational psychology and counseling, education, design, Chinese as a second language, library and information sciences, mechatronics engineering, history, physical education
The Chinese military has boosted its capability to fight at a high tempo using the element of surprise and new technology, the Ministry of National Defense said in the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) published on Monday last week. The ministry highlighted Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) developments showing significant changes in Beijing’s strategy for war on Taiwan. The PLA has made significant headway in building capabilities for all-weather, multi-domain intelligence, surveillance, operational control and a joint air-sea blockade against Taiwan’s lines of communication, it said. The PLA has also improved its capabilities in direct amphibious assault operations aimed at seizing strategically important beaches,
‘MALIGN PURPOSE’: Governments around the world conduct espionage operations, but China’s is different, as its ultimate goal is annexation, a think tank head said Taiwan is facing a growing existential threat from its own people spying for China, experts said, as the government seeks to toughen measures to stop Beijing’s infiltration efforts and deter Taiwanese turncoats. While Beijing and Taipei have been spying on each other for years, experts said that espionage posed a bigger threat to Taiwan due to the risk of a Chinese attack. Taiwan’s intelligence agency said China used “diverse channels and tactics” to infiltrate the nation’s military, government agencies and pro-China organizations. The main targets were retired and active members of the military, persuaded by money, blackmail or pro-China ideology to steal
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
RSS