Recently the U.S. House of Representatives' China Task Force has introduced 137 bills, seven of which are pro-Taiwan. What is the significance of these bills? What impact will they have on U.S.-Taiwan relations? How will Taiwan benefit from them?

First of all, the task force’s proposals demonstrate the U.S. Congress' consistent support for Taiwan. The Republic of China has the strong backing of members of both the U.S. Senate and the House, thanks to the persistent efforts of Taiwan’s foreign affairs agencies. Whether it is the Democratic Party or the Republican Party that will take power, lawmakers of both parties are fully committed to safeguarding Taiwan’s security and interests. The most important Taiwan-friendly bill passed in the past is the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act.

Pro-Taiwan U.S. lawmakers used to be known collectively as “the China lobby”. Then in 2002 and 2003, the House and the Senate formed the U.S. Congressional Taiwan Caucus. Congressmen involved in the group spared no effort to support Taiwan and became the main driving force promoting closer political, economic and military ties between the U.S. and Taiwan.

Apart from introducing the said bundle of bills, lawmakers under Donald Trump’s administration who take part in the U.S. Congressional Taiwan Caucus and other pro-Taiwan lawmakers have also proposed numerous bills to deepen U.S.-Taiwan relations or bills favoring Taiwan. They include the Taiwan Travel Act that took effect on March 16, 2018, as well as the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, the Taiwan Defense Assessment Commission Act of 2018, the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act of 2018 and the Taiwan International Participation Act of 2018, which were proposed between April and May 2018.

These Taiwan-friendly acts are legislative measures topping up President Trump’s trade war on China. They serve to dial up the pressure on China and also reinforce U.S.-Taiwan relations.

U.S. Congressmen’s support for Taiwan does not come out of the blue. It is a result of the long-standing hard work of Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Diplomacy with the U.S. is the ministry’s top priority. In the past, people who achieved top scores at the Civil Service Special Examination for Diplomatic Personnel usually joined the Department of North American Affairs, and the country’s best diplomats were at the forefront of Taiwan’s diplomacy towards the U.S.. Every year during the Congress recess, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs invited many lawmakers, department heads, senior and low-ranking assistants and even interns of the U.S. Congress to Taiwan. With these efforts, the ministry has developed a broad congressional network, which plays an important role at crucial moments.

To be sure, it is great to have the U.S. Congress' robust support, but Taiwan needs to be aware of two things. First, under the U.S. system, after a bill is passed in identical form by both houses, it can become a law only if the U.S. president signs it or if he takes no action while the Congress is in session. If the procedure is not completed before January 3 the following year, the bundle of bills will become invalid.

Second, among the seven bills, the Taiwan Assurance Act, the Non-Discrimination Act, the Employment Fairness for Taiwan Act, and S.249 concern Taiwan’s international participation. They share the same objective as the Taiwan International Participation Act of 2018. However, because of China’s all-round suppression of Taiwan’s international space and international participation, even if the acts are passed, Taiwan can hardly broaden its international participation. In other words, the bills are meant more to demonstrate the congressmen' position on Taiwan than to bring about real changes.

Among the other three bills, the Taiwan Symbols of Sovereignty Act would allow diplomats and members in the Taiwanese military to display Taiwan’s flag and wear their uniforms while in the U.S. on official businesses. When Ma Ying-jeou was in office, Shen Lyu-shun, then representative to the U.S., hosted a flag-raising ceremony at the Twin Oaks estate in Washington on New Year’s Day in 2015. Taiwan’s U.S.-based military personnel attending the event were clad in their uniforms. When the U.S. State Department later learned that such a ceremony had taken place, its officials strongly criticized Taiwan. If the said act is passed, it might violate America’s “one China” policy. Whether it will be passed depends on whether Washington intends to make major adjustments to its strategy towards China.

The Taiwan Defense Act requires the US to prevent China from invading Taiwan. It also involves the US making major adjustments to its strategy towards China. Whether it will be passed depends on whether the US president has the resolve to change its strategy.

The Taiwan Fellowship Act would grant fellowships in Taiwan to U.S. government employees. Taiwan should embrace it with open arms. The Stanford Center used to be at National Taiwan University, teaching U.S. officials and scholars the Chinese language. In 1997, however, the center moved to Tsinghua University in Beijing. Since then, two generations of U.S. State Department officials and the majority of U.S. scholars well-versed in China issues have learned Chinese in Beijing. They do not have deep ties with Taiwan. If the Taiwan Fellowship Act is passed, the loose ties between U.S. officials and academics and Taiwan could be strengthened again.

On balance, on the basis of a strong pro-Taiwan congressional force, courtesy of Taiwan’s long-running efforts, the Sino-U.S. trade war launched by Trump has enabled the force to further deepen Taiwan’s relations with the U.S.. Nevertheless, the chance of the bundle of acts getting passed at the Congress is small because of restrictions posed by the U.S. constitutional system and because some of the acts require Washington to make drastic changes to its strategy. Even if they are passed, the acts that demand strategic changes are likely to be vetoed by the president. Therefore, the bills carry greater symbolic meaning than practical significance.

(Hu Sheng-ping, assistant professor of the Department of International Studies, Nanhua University)

Click here for Chinese version

---------------------------------

Apple Daily’s all-new English Edition is now available on the mobile app: bit.ly/2yMMfQE

To download the latest version,

iOS: bit.ly/AD_iOS

Android: bit.ly/AD_android

Or search Appledaily in App Store or Google Play