Biden seen likely to retain U.S. decision on exchanges with Taiwan
ROC Central News Agency
01/10/2021 07:45 PM
Taipei, Jan. 10 (CNA) Two Taiwanese scholars said Sunday that the incoming administration of United States President-elect Joe Biden is unlikely to revoke the current U.S. administration's decision Saturday to lift restrictions on contact between American and Taiwanese officials.
Arthur Ding (丁樹範), professor emeritus at the Graduate Institute of East Asia Studies at National Chengchi University, told CNA that the issue will hardly be a top priority for Biden when he takes office on Jan. 20.
Instead, Biden will be focused on tackling the COVID-19 pandemic and reviving the U.S. economy, Ding said, when asked whether he thought Biden would retain the decision to lift these restrictions.
Echoing Ding's views, Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a senior analyst at the government-funded Institute for National Defense and Security Research (INDSR), told CNA that with both the U.S. House and Senate supporting Taiwan, Biden would not want to stir up controversy over the issue.
In the coming years, Biden is expected to continue the U.S.' policy of containing Chinese expansion, Su said.
On Saturday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that the U.S. was lifting restrictions on contact between American and Taiwanese officials, which had been in place since Washington cut ties with Taipei in favor of Beijing in 1979.
For several decades, the State Department had created complex internal restrictions on interactions between Taiwanese and American diplomats, service members and other officials, he said.
"The United States government took these actions unilaterally, in an attempt to appease the Communist regime in Beijing. No more," Pompeo said in a statement. "Today I am announcing that I am lifting all of these self-imposed restrictions."
A source familiar with the matter said some of the restrictions listed in the guidelines forbid Taiwan diplomats and military personnel from displaying their national flag at U.S. government venues and also prohibit the display of any symbols of Taiwan's sovereignty on U.S. government premises.
Asked to comment on Pompeo's announcement, Ding said it was meant to ensure closer and more frequent exchanges between senior officials from Taiwan and the U.S., as promoted in legislation such as the Taiwan Travel Act, the TAIPEI Act, and National Defense Authorization Act, which have been passed in the U.S. Congress over the years.
Ding also said that many of the restrictions had already been lifted over the years during the administrations of Barack Obama and Donald Trump, allowing, for example, Taiwan's representative to the U.S. to visit the State Department.
In July 2020, Taiwan's representative to U.S. Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) paid a call on David Stilwell, assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, a visit that was publicized by the State Department, Ding noted.
Moreover, as Taiwan was not allowed to display their national flag at U.S. government venues under the unrevised guidelines for contact, Ding said he would be looking to see whether the new policy meant that the Republic of China (Taiwan) flag would be displayed at the U.S. State Department in the future.
Both Ding and Su said they did not think Biden would revoke the decision by the Trump administration any time soon, as that would appear to be kowtowing to China and would spur criticism within the U.S.
The Trump administration's decision to lift the restrictions was undoubtedly a signal to the incoming U.S. administration not to cozy up to China, Su said.
(By Matt Yu and Joseph Yeh)
Enditem/pc
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