Taiwan Assurance Act of 2019

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 878 To foster security in Taiwan, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 26, 2019 Mr. COTTON (for himself, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. CRUZ, Ms. COR- TEZ MASTO, and Mr. COONS) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations A BILL To foster security in Taiwan, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Taiwan Assurance Act 4 of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress makes the following findings: 7 (1) April 10, 2019, marks the 40th anniversary 8 of the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979 (Public Law 9 96–8). 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:14 Apr 02, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S878.IS S878 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •S 878 IS (2) Since 1949, the close relationship between 1 the United States and Taiwan has been of enormous 2 benefit to both parties and to the Indo-Pacific region 3 as a whole. 4 (3) The security of Taiwan and its democracy 5 are key elements for the continued peace and sta- 6 bility of the greater Indo-Pacific region, and a vital 7 national security interest of the United States. 8 (4) The military balance of power across the 9 Taiwan Strait continues to shift in favor of the Peo- 10 ple’s Republic of China, which is currently engaged 11 in a comprehensive military modernization campaign 12 to enhance the power-projection capabilities of the 13 People’s Liberation Army and its ability to conduct 14 joint operations. 15 (5) Taiwan and its diplomatic partners continue 16 to face sustained pressure and coercion from the 17 Government of the People’s Republic of China to 18 isolate Taiwan from the international community. 19 (6) It is the policy of the United States to rein- 20 force its commitments to Taiwan under the Taiwan 21 Relations Act in a manner consistent with the ‘‘Six 22 Assurances’’ and in accordance with the United 23 States ‘‘One China’’ policy as both governments 24 work to improve bilateral relations. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:14 Apr 02, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S878.IS S878 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •S 878 IS (7) In the Taiwan Travel Act, which became 1 law on March 16, 2018, Congress observed that the 2 ‘‘self-imposed restrictions that the United States 3 maintains’’ on relations with Taiwan have negative 4 consequences for the United States-Taiwan relation- 5 ship. 6 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 7 It is the sense of Congress that— 8 (1) Taiwan is a vital part of the United States 9 Free and Open Indo-Pacific Strategy; 10 (2) the United States Government— 11 (A) supports Taiwan’s implementation of 12 its asymmetric defense strategy; and 13 (B) urges Taiwan to increase its defense 14 spending in order to fully resource its defense 15 strategy; 16 (3) the United States should conduct regular 17 transfers of defense articles to Taiwan in order to 18 enhance its self-defense capabilities, particularly its 19 efforts to develop and integrate asymmetric capabili- 20 ties, including undersea warfare and air defense ca- 21 pabilities, into its military forces; and 22 (4) in 2019, the United State Trade Represent- 23 ative should resume meetings under the United 24 States and Taiwan Trade and Investment Frame- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:14 Apr 02, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S878.IS S878 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •S 878 IS work Agreement with the goal of reaching a bilateral 1 free trade agreement. 2 SEC. 4. TAIWAN’S INCLUSION IN INTERNATIONAL ORGANI- 3 ZATIONS. 4 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 5 gress that the People’s Republic of China’s attempts to 6 exclude Taiwan from international organizations— 7 (1) are detrimental to global health, civilian air 8 safety, and efforts to counter transnational crime; 9 and 10 (2) are a national security concern of the 11 United States. 12 (b) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is the policy of the 13 United States to advocate for Taiwan’s meaningful par- 14 ticipation in the United Nations, the World Health Assem- 15 bly, the International Civil Aviation Organization, the 16 International Criminal Police Organization, and other 17 international bodies as appropriate. 18 SEC. 5. REVIEW OF DEPARTMENT OF STATE TAIWAN 19 GUIDELINES. 20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 21 date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall con- 22 duct a review of the Department of State’s guidance on 23 diplomatic practice with Taiwan, including the periodic 24 memorandum entitled ‘‘Guidelines on Relations with Tai- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:14 Apr 02, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S878.IS S878 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •S 878 IS wan’’ and related documents, and reissue the guidance to 1 executive branch agencies and offices. 2 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 3 gress that the Department of State’s guidance regarding 4 relations with Taiwan— 5 (1) should be crafted with the intent to deepen 6 and expand United States-Taiwan relations, and be 7 based on the value, merits, and importance of the 8 United States-Taiwan relationship; 9 (2) should acknowledge the reality that Taiwan 10 is governed by a representative democratic govern- 11 ment that is peacefully constituted through free and 12 fair elections that reflect the will of the people of 13 Taiwan, and that Taiwan is a free and open society 14 that respects universal human rights and democratic 15 values; and 16 (3) should ensure that any distinctions in diplo- 17 matic practice regarding relations with Taiwan must 18 be consistent with the longstanding, comprehensive, 19 strategic, and values-based relationship the United 20 States shares with Taiwan, and contribute to the 21 peaceful resolution of cross-Strait issues. 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:14 Apr 02, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S878.IS S878 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •S 878 IS SEC. 6. ENHANCING THE U.S.-TAIWAN DEFENSE RELATION- 1 SHIP. 2 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 3 gress that it should be the policy of the Department of 4 Defense to support Taiwan’s asymmetric defense strategy, 5 including the development of Taiwan’s undersea warfare 6 and air defense capabilities. 7 (b) REQUIRED DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AC- 8 TIONS.—The Secretary of Defense shall make efforts to 9 include Taiwanese forces in bilateral and multilateral mili- 10 tary exercises, as appropriate, to bolster Taiwan’s defense 11 capabilities. 12 (c) DEFENSE ATTACHE´.—The Chief of the Liaison 13 Affairs section at the American Institute in Taiwan shall 14 be a general or flag officer. 15 SEC. 7. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. 16 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact- 17 ment of this Act, the President shall submit a report to 18 the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and 19 the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Rep- 20 resentatives that includes a description of— 21 (1) the results of the President’s review of guid- 22 ance on diplomatic practice with Taiwan, including 23 a copy of the reissued ‘‘Guidelines of Relations with 24 Taiwan’’ memorandum; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:14 Apr 02, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S878.IS S878 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •S 878 IS (2) the implementation of the Taiwan Travel 1 Act (Public Law 115–135). 2 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:14 Apr 02, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S878.IS S878 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS