U.S. to back Taiwan self-defense despite China rhetoric: AIT chair
ROC Central News Agency
07/07/2023 02:06 PM
Washington, July 6 (CNA) The United States has deep respect for Taiwan's democracy and is committed to supporting Taiwan's self-defense, even in the face of loud complaints from Beijing, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Chair Laura Rosenberger said Thursday.
"Our [the U.S.] interest in peace and stability across the Strait and our commitments to supporting Taiwan's self-defense capacity are things we will continue to uphold," Rosenberger said during a media discussion held at AIT's Washington headquarters.
She was responding to a question about the recent approval of US$440 million in arms sales to Taiwan, the 10th time during the administration of President Joe Biden that the U.S. has approved the sale of arms to Taiwan.
"Any complaints from Beijing are not going to change that approach," she said, while indicating that these kinds of arm sales are long-standing.
In May, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed at a Senate hearing that the U.S. would also soon send Taiwan US$500 million in stockpiled military equipment using the presidential drawdown authority (PDA), but nothing has been announced so far.
The PDA option was brought into play to help Taiwan get access to weapons quickly amid delays in U.S. deliveries of arms ordered by Taiwan, with many reports putting the backlog at US$19 billion worth of weapons.
When asked if the lack of action on the PDA was due to Secretary of State Antony Blinken's recent trip to China, Rosenberger, who assumed the post on March 20, said she did not have anything specific on the PDA beyond what Austin said before Congress.
The PDA is a rapid response tool that allows the American government to provide emergency military assistance to U.S. allies and partners in crisis all over the world.
Rosenberger also spoke briefly about her trip to Taiwan in June, when she got to meet with the country's presidential candidates and some of their advisers.
"I've really valued the opportunity to get to know them to understand better each of their policies and their priorities, and to really build relationships with each of the candidates," she said.
Rosenberger rejected the idea that the conversations with the candidates were "interviews" designed to assess their policies, as some have suggested.
"I'd actually just like to make really clear that that's not at all the purpose of these conversations," the AIT chair said, indicating that U.S. policy is "not going to change based on which candidate is in office."
Describing Taiwan's democracy as a beacon in the region and globally, the AIT chair reiterated U.S. support for Taiwan's free and fair elections, and as such it will not take sides in the election and opposes outside interference in Taiwan's elections.
On the topic of the avoidance of double taxation between Taiwan and the U.S., she said it is an issue that is very high on the radar of policymakers in Washington as well as for President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and her colleagues.
"There are efforts to explore what might be possible," the AIT chair said, but she noted that she did not have anything specific at this point in time.
(By Stacy Hsu, Chiang Chin-yeh and Ko Lin)
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