US Senate Passes Taiwan Travel Act
The US Senate passed the Taiwan Travel Act (HR535 Taiwan Travel Act) with no objections Wednesday, February 28. The legislation only needs President Donald Trump’s signature to become law.
[See previous article: US Congress Passes Taiwan Travel Act.]
The bill says it should be U.S. policy to allow officials at all levels to travel to Taiwan to meet their Taiwanese counterparts and permit high-level Taiwanese officials to enter the United States.
Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry thanked the United States for the unanimous support for the bill and for the U.S. government’s increasingly friendly and open attitude towards Taiwan.
“The Foreign Ministry will keep developing an even more substantive cooperative relationship with the United States, to promote both sides’ joint values and mutually-beneficial interests,” it said.
Taiwan’s Presidential Office said it sincerely thanks the United States Congress for its long-term firm support for Taiwan in various fields and will continue to develop a more solid and cooperative relationship with the United States. As a member of the international community, Taiwan will continue to develop a more solid and cooperative relationship with the United States and work together to contribute to the peace, stability and well-being of the region.
Formosan Association for Public Affairs (FAPA) president Mike Kuo (郭正光) told Taiwan’s Chinese-language media that the bill will remove obstacles to Taiwan’s top officials, including Tsai Ing-wen’s visits to Washington.
Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency reported earlier this month that China was “strongly dissatisfied” with the legislation, saying that some of its clauses violated the one-China principle under which it considers Taiwan a breakaway Chinese province.
Taiwan English News is an independent publication with no corporate funding. If you found this article informative, and would like to support my work, please buy me a coffee or support me on Patreon. Subscribe to Taiwan English News for free to receive the latest news via email. Advertising queries are welcome. Share, like, comment below.