Members of the US House of Representatives yesterday reintroduced a bill that asks the US Department of State to review established guidelines on how the US engages with Taiwan.
Republican Ann Wagner and Democrats 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.
Photo: EPA-EFE
According to a joint statement issued by the three lawmakers, the new version of the act would again require the State Department to conduct periodic reviews of its guidelines for US engagement with Taiwan and Taiwanese officials.
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," the statement said.
They should also "identify opportunities to lift any remaining self-imposed limitations on US-Taiwan engagement and articulate a plan to do so," the statement said.
After severing ties with Taiwan in 1979, Washington developed guidelines to limit official interactions with Taiwan to avoid angering the People's Republic of China.
These guidelines have included banning senior US executive branch officials, including high-ranking military officers, from visiting Taiwan, while also blocking Taiwan's top leaders from traveling to the US.
Also, meetings between officials from the two sides have had to meet a list of requirements, such as being held at venues other than in official federal buildings or asking Taiwanese officials not to wear any official uniforms or insignia.
Former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo removed the guidelines in the final month of US President Donald Trump's first term in office.
However, many of the restrictions were later put back in place by the administration of former US president Joe Biden.
In the statement issued yesterday, Wagner was quoted as saying 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 was quoted as saying in the statement.
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