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U.S. legislative support for Taiwan's security tremendous: Duckworth

ROC Central News Agency

05/31/2022 01:30 PM

Taipei, May 31 (CNA) There is tremendous and bipartisan support from U.S. lawmakers for Taiwan's security, visiting United States Senator Tammy Duckworth said Tuesday.

"So I'm here this time to again, talk about our support for Taiwan security," said Duckworth, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, during a meeting with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) at the Presidential Office.

"There's tremendous support for Taiwan within the legislative branch," she said.

Duckworth, whose visit is part of a larger tour of the Indo-Pacific region, is in Taiwan for a second consecutive year after stopping over for a day in June 2021 with fellow senators Dan Sullivan and Chris Coons.

The senator's visit to Taiwan from Monday to Wednesday also came four days after she introduced the proposed Strengthen Taiwan's Security Act, which she earlier said would "strengthen our support for Taiwan and provide it with the tools it needs to protect itself from any unwarranted attack."

Duckworth noted that the bill has received bipartisan support, with two other Democrats and three Republican senators tapped as the bill's co-sponsors. "I have a line of people all waiting to sign on to it, all from the Armed Services Committee," she added.

According to Duckworth's press statement, the bill would "assess opportunities to deliver lethal aid to Taiwan, enhance Taiwan's intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets and increase needed prepositioned stocks in the region."

The U.S. cooperation with Taiwan is not limited to security issues but also includes economic affairs, Duckworth said.

She then voiced her support for U.S. President Joe Biden's "efforts in engaging in economic relationships and closer relationships between our two nations on an economic front as well as on national security."

Meanwhile, Tsai said Taiwan looks forward to forging closer and deeper ties with the U.S. on matters of regional security.

At the same time, Tsai said, the Taiwan government would continue to express its willingness to participate in the Indo-Pacific economic framework (IPEF) put forward by the U.S. government.

"In the near future, we look forward to Taiwan and the U.S. working together and taking new steps to develop concrete plans that further deepen our economic partnership," she added.

The IPEF, an initiative launched by the U.S. last week with 13 other partners, is intended as a bulwark against China's growing economic and political influence in the region.

According to a statement issued by the White House, the IPEF members will be engaging in discussions to strengthen economic cooperation on the digital economy, supply chains, clean energy, and infrastructure, among other areas.

(By Teng Pei-ju)

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