A US government funding bill for fiscal 2023 that includes provisions to authorize US$2 billion in loans to Taiwan, but not grants, to buy weapons on Friday cleared the US Congress following a vote in the House of Representatives.
The US$1.65 trillion Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act, covering funding for the US government, was approved by the House in a 225-201 vote, with one abstention.
The bill, which cleared the US Senate the previous day and now awaits US President Joe Biden’s signature to take effect, would provide a record US$858 billion in defense funding for the US — a 10 percent increase of the funding in fiscal 2022 — and US$772 billion in non-defense funding.
Photo: AFP
The bill would allow Washington to provide up to US$2 billion in direct loans to Taiwan under the Foreign Military Financing Program.
Taipei would be required to pay the debt within 12 years.
However, the bill does not include provisions for US$10 billion in grants — US$2 billion per year over the next five years — for Taiwan to buy US-made weapons, as was mentioned in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal 2023, which was signed into law by Biden earlier on Friday.
Despite enactment of the NDAA, grants and loans must still be proposed through appropriation bills and approved by the US Congress before Taiwan can receive them. Even though the NDAA includes provision for grants, US law stipulates that funding cannot be provided if it is not included in an appropriations act.
The appropriation bill would also authorize funding to support a fellowship program that offers opportunities for US federal employees to live and work in Taiwan for up to two years.
The NDAA authorizes establishment of a regional contingency stockpile for Taiwan using excess defense articles.
The NDAA mandates that the US Department of State and Department of Defense prioritize and expedite processing of requests from Taiwan for weapons under the Foreign Military Sales program.
It says that they must not delay processing of requests for bundling purposes.
In addition, the NDAA includes a nonbinding provision stating Taiwanese naval forces should be included in the Rim of the Pacific exercises, as appropriate, in 2024, but does not require the US administration to invite Taiwan to join the drills.
Taiwan is stepping up plans to create self-sufficient supply chains for combat drones and increase foreign orders from the US to counter China’s numerical superiority, a defense official said on Saturday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, the official said the nation’s armed forces are in agreement with US Admiral Samuel Paparo’s assessment that Taiwan’s military must be prepared to turn the nation’s waters into a “hellscape” for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Paparo, the commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, reiterated the concept during a Congressional hearing in Washington on Wednesday. He first coined the term in a security conference last
Prosecutors today declined to say who was questioned regarding alleged forgery on petitions to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators, after Chinese-language media earlier reported that members of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Youth League were brought in for questioning. The Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau confirmed that two people had been questioned, but did not disclose any further information about the ongoing investigation. KMT Youth League members Lee Hsiao-liang (李孝亮) and Liu Szu-yin (劉思吟) — who are leading the effort to recall DPP caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) and Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) — both posted on Facebook saying: “I
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 today amid outcry over his decision to wear a Nazi armband to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case last night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and covering the book with his coat. Lee said today that this is a serious
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,912) for advertisements that exceed its approved business scope, requiring the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license may be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter enforcement of Chinese e-commerce platforms and measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan in response to US President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs on China. The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee met today to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said
RSS