What This Bill Does
This bill requires the President to impose economic sanctions on China if the Chinese military invades Taiwan. The sanctions target Chinese government leaders, military officials, financial institutions, and companies. The bill uses economic penalties as a way to discourage China from attempting a military invasion of Taiwan.
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Who It Affects
• Chinese government officials and military leaders
• Members of the Chinese Communist Party
• Chinese banks and financial institutions
• Chinese companies and entities owned or controlled by China's government
• United States financial institutions and investors
• Importers of Chinese goods into the United States
• The Securities and Exchange Commission (the agency that oversees stock markets)
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Key Provisions
• The President must impose sanctions within 3 days after determining or Congress declares that China's military has invaded Taiwan. Sanctions include blocking property owned by targeted officials, banning them from entering the United States, and freezing their assets in America. (Sec. 7)
• Chinese banks and government-owned companies must have their property blocked and their accounts prohibited from operating in the United States. (Sec. 8, 9)
• Chinese companies cannot list their stocks on American stock exchanges or trade them there. (Sec. 11)
• American banks and investment companies cannot invest money in Chinese government-owned entities or in certain Chinese industries like technology, aerospace, semiconductors, and artificial intelligence. (Sec. 12)
• Goods made in China or by Chinese government companies cannot be imported into the United States. The President can make exceptions only if he determines the goods are necessary for national security, economic security, or public health and reports his decision to Congress. (Sec. 13)
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What Changes
If China's military invades Taiwan, the United States will immediately freeze Chinese government assets in America, prevent Chinese companies from trading on American stock exchanges, block Chinese banks from operating through American financial institutions, ban American investments in Chinese government companies and specific industries, and stop importing Chinese goods into the country. Congress can also decide on its own that an invasion has occurred, triggering these same sanctions if the President has not acted within 24 hours.
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Important Definitions
• "Military invasion" includes amphibious landings, airborne operations, aerial bombardment, blockades, missile attacks, naval bombardment, and attacks on any territory controlled by Taiwan's government, including its offshore islands. (Sec. 5)
• "Covered determination" means either the President declaring within 24 hours that an invasion occurred or Congress passing a joint resolution making that determination. (Sec. 6)
• "United States person" means a United States citizen, permanent resident, or any company organized under United States law. (Sec. 5)
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Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 1027
To require the imposition of sanctions with respect to the People’s Republic
of China if the People’s Liberation Army initiates a military invasion
of Taiwan.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
MARCH 29, 2023
Mr. SULLIVAN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred
to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
A BILL
To require the imposition of sanctions with respect to the
People’s Republic of China if the People’s Liberation
Army initiates a military invasion of Taiwan.
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 ‘‘Sanctions Targeting
4
Aggressors of Neighboring Democracies with Taiwan Act
5
of 2023’’ or the ‘‘STAND with Taiwan Act of 2023’’.
6
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
7
Congress makes the following findings:
8
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(1) Taiwan is a free and prosperous democracy
1
of nearly 24,000,000 people, an important contrib-
2
utor to peace and stability around the world, and
3
continues to embody and promote democratic values,
4
freedom, and human rights in Asia.
5
(2) The policy of the United States toward Tai-
6
wan is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act (22
7
U.S.C. 3301 et seq.), the United States-People’s Re-
8
public of China joint communique´s concluded in
9
1972, 1978, and 1982, and the Six Assurances that
10
President Ronald Reagan communicated to Taiwan
11
in 1982.
12
(3) Under section 2 of the Taiwan Relations
13
Act (22 U.S.C. 3301), it is the policy of the United
14
States—
15
(A) ‘‘to preserve and promote extensive,
16
close, and friendly commercial, cultural, and
17
other relations between the people of the United
18
States and the people on Taiwan, as well as the
19
people on the China mainland and all other peo-
20
ples of the Western Pacific area’’;
21
(B) ‘‘to declare that peace and stability in
22
the area are in the political, security, and eco-
23
nomic interests of the United States, and are
24
matters of international concern’’;
25
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(C) ‘‘to make clear that the United States
1
decision to establish diplomatic relations with
2
the People’s Republic of China rests upon the
3
expectation that the future of Taiwan will be
4
determined by peaceful means’’;
5
(D) ‘‘to consider any effort to determine
6
the future of Taiwan by other than peaceful
7
means, including by boycotts or embargoes, a
8
threat to the peace and security of the Western
9
Pacific area and of grave concern to the United
10
States’’;
11
(E) ‘‘to provide Taiwan with arms of a de-
12
fensive character’’; and
13
(F) ‘‘to maintain the capacity of the
14
United States to resist any resort to force or
15
other forms of coercion that would jeopardize
16
the security, or the social or economic system,
17
of the people on Taiwan’’.
18
(4) For decades and increasingly since the elec-
19
tion of President Tsai Ing-wen as President of Tai-
20
wan in 2016, the Chinese Communist Party has em-
21
ployed a variety of coercive military and nonmilitary
22
tactics short of armed conflict in its efforts to exert
23
existential pressure on Taiwan, including through
24
diplomatic
isolation,
restricting
tourism,
25
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cyberattacks, spreading disinformation, and control-
1
ling the ability of Taiwan to purchase COVID–19
2
vaccines from other countries.
3
(5) Since 2020, military incursions by the Peo-
4
ple’s Republic of China into Taiwan’s air defense
5
identification zone have been occurring at a rapidly
6
increasing pace. In 2022, such incursions occurred
7
1,700 times, nearly double the total in 2021, which
8
was itself almost triple the 2020 total.
9
(6) Since 2021, there has been a notable in-
10
crease in military provocations by the People’s Lib-
11
eration Army against Taiwan, including incursions
12
over the midline separating the People’s Republic of
13
China from Taiwan, holding military exercises in the
14
vicinity of Taiwan’s controlled waters, and per-
15
forming live-fire exercises in the South China Sea.
16
(7) In August 2022, the People’s Republic of
17
China held unprecedented live-fire military exercises
18
and a simulated blockade involving hundreds of mili-
19
tary aircraft, dozens of warships, and launches of
20
short-range ballistic missiles over the territory of
21
Taiwan.
22
(8) The People’s Republic of China is attempt-
23
ing to erase the midline separating it from Taiwan,
24
increasing the prospects for incidental contact be-
25
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5
•S 1027 IS
tween forces of the People’s Republic of China and
1
Taiwan as well as shorting reaction times related to
2
provocations by the People’s Republic of China.
3
(9) On August 10, 2022, the Taiwan Affairs
4
Office of the State Council of the People’s Republic
5
of China released a white paper entitled ‘‘The Tai-
6
wan Question and China’s Reunification in the New
7
Era’’ that reiterated the long-standing position of
8
the Government of the People’s Republic of China
9
not to renounce the use of force to bring about unifi-
10
cation with Taiwan and to ‘‘always be ready to re-
11
spond with the use of force . . . to interference by
12
external forces or radical action by separatist ele-
13
ments’’.
14
(10) In March 2021, then Commander of the
15
United States Indo-Pacific Command Admiral Philip
16
Davidson testified that the threat of a military inva-
17
sion of Taiwan by the People’s Liberation Army ‘‘is
18
manifest during this decade, in fact in the next six
19
years’’.
20
(11) In March 2021, then Commander of the
21
United States Pacific Fleet Admiral John Aquilino
22
testified that the threat of a military invasion by the
23
People’s Liberation Army of Taiwan is ‘‘much closer
24
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to us than most think’’ and could materialize well
1
before 2035.
2
(12) On February 24, 2022, the Armed Forces
3
of the Russian Federation initiated an unprovoked
4
and unjustified invasion of Ukraine, resulting in at
5
least 14,000 civilian casualties, including more than
6
5,000 deaths.
7
(13) The Russian Federation invasion has de-
8
stabilized global markets and supply chains, from
9
energy to food, contributing to high inflation and re-
10
cession in the United States and deep cuts to global
11
gross domestic product.
12
(14) With the assistance of the United States
13
and European allies, Ukrainian forces have success-
14
fully repelled the Russian Federation invasion and
15
recaptured significant portions of territory taken by
16
the Russian Federation in the initial stages of the
17
invasion.
18
(15) In addition to military power, timely mes-
19
saging around the use of economic and financial in-
20
struments of United States power and their poten-
21
tial use can have an important deterrent effect on
22
the actions of other countries.
23
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
24
It is the sense of Congress that—
25
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•S 1027 IS
(1) it is in the interests of the United States to
1
maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific region, with
2
peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait as a critical
3
component;
4
(2) efforts by the Government of the People’s
5
Republic of China and the Chinese Communist
6
Party to unilaterally determine the future of Taiwan
7
through non-peaceful means, including threats and
8
the direct use of force, military coercion, economic
9
boycotts or embargoes, cyberattacks, and efforts to
10
internationally isolate or annex Taiwan—
11
(A) directly undermine the spirit, intent,
12
and purpose of the Taiwan Relations Act (22
13
U.S.C. 3301 et seq.);
14
(B) undermine peace and stability in the
15
Taiwan Strait;
16
(C) limit a free and open Indo-Pacific re-
17
gion; and
18
(D) are of grave concern to the Govern-
19
ment of the United States;
20
(3) the initiation of a military invasion of Tai-
21
wan by the People’s Liberation Army would—
22
(A) constitute a threat to the peace and se-
23
curity of the Western Pacific Area and threaten
24
the peace stability of the entire globe; and
25
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(B) undermine the core political, security,
1
and economic interests of the United States at
2
home and abroad; and
3
(4) as an important deterrent measure against
4
a military invasion of Taiwan, the Government of
5
the People’s Republic of China and the Chinese
6
Communist Party must understand that initiating
7
such an invasion will result in catastrophic economic
8
and financial consequences for the People’s Republic
9
of China.
10
SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
11
The policy of the Government of the United States
12
on Taiwan is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act (22
13
U.S.C. 3301 et seq.), the United States-People’s Republic
14
of China joint communique´s concluded in 1972, 1978, and
15
1982, and the Six Assurances that President Ronald
16
Reagan communicated to Taiwan in 1982, but in the event
17
of the initiation of a military invasion of Taiwan by the
18
People’s Liberation Army, it is the policy of the United
19
States—
20
(1) to use and deploy all economic, commercial,
21
and financial instruments and levers of power, in-
22
cluding—
23
(A) the imposition of sanctions with re-
24
spect to leadership of the Chinese Communist
25
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•S 1027 IS
Party, key officials of the Government of the
1
People’s Republic of China, and financial insti-
2
tutions and other entities affiliated with the
3
Chinese Communist Party or the Government
4
of the People’s Republic of China;
5
(B) prohibiting the listing or trading of the
6
securities of Chinese entities on United States
7
securities exchanges;
8
(C) prohibiting investments by United
9
States financial institutions in economic sectors
10
of the People’s Republic of China; and
11
(D) prohibiting the importation of certain
12
goods mined, produced, or manufactured in the
13
People’s Republic of China into the United
14
States; and
15
(2) to work in close coordination with allies and
16
partners of the United States to encourage those al-
17
lies and partners to undertake similar economic,
18
commercial, and financial actions against the Gov-
19
ernment of the People’s Republic of China and the
20
Chinese Communist Party.
21
SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.
22
In this Act:
23
(1) ACCOUNT; CORRESPONDENT ACCOUNT; PAY-
24
ABLE-THROUGH
ACCOUNT.—The terms ‘‘account’’,
25
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•S 1027 IS
‘‘correspondent account’’, and ‘‘payable-through ac-
1
count’’ have the meanings given those terms in sec-
2
tion 5318A of title 31, United States Code.
3
(2) ADMISSION; ADMITTED; ALIEN.—The terms
4
‘‘admission’’, ‘‘admitted’’, and ‘‘alien’’ have the
5
meanings given those terms in section 101 of the
6
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101).
7
(3) APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMIT-
8
TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com-
9
mittees’’ means—
10
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations,
11
the Committee on Armed Services, and the
12
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
13
Affairs of the Senate; and
14
(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the
15
Committee on Armed Services, and the Com-
16
mittee on Financial Services of the House of
17
Representatives.
18
(4) COVERED
DETERMINATION.—The term
19
‘‘covered determination’’ has the meaning given that
20
term in section 6(a).
21
(5) FINANCIAL
INSTITUTION.—The term ‘‘fi-
22
nancial institution’’ means a financial institution
23
specified in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), (D), (E),
24
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(F), (G), (H), (I), (J), (M), or (Y) of section
1
5312(a)(2) of title 31, United States Code.
2
(6) FOREIGN PERSON.—The term ‘‘foreign per-
3
son’’ means an individual or entity that is not a
4
United States person.
5
(7) KNOWINGLY.—The term ‘‘knowingly’’ with
6
respect to conduct, a circumstance, or a result,
7
means that a person had actual knowledge, or
8
should have known, of the conduct, the cir-
9
cumstance, or the result.
10
(8) MILITARY INVASION.—The term ‘‘military
11
invasion’’ includes—
12
(A) an amphibious landing or assault;
13
(B) an airborne operation or air assault;
14
(C) an aerial bombardment or blockade;
15
(D) missile attacks, including rockets, bal-
16
listic missiles, cruise missiles, and hypersonic
17
missiles;
18
(E) a naval bombardment or blockade; and
19
(F) attack on any territory controlled or
20
administered by the Government of Taiwan, in-
21
cluding offshore islands controlled or adminis-
22
tered by that Government.
23
(9)
UNITED
STATES
PERSON.—The
term
24
‘‘United States person’’ means—
25
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•S 1027 IS
(A) a United States citizen or an alien law-
1
fully admitted for permanent residence to the
2
United States; or
3
(B) an entity organized under the laws of
4
the United States or any jurisdiction within the
5
United States, including a foreign branch of
6
such an entity.
7
SEC. 6. DETERMINATION OF THE INITIATION OF A MILI-
8
TARY INVASION BY THE PEOPLE’S LIBERA-
9
TION ARMY OR ITS PROXIES.
10
(a) COVERED DETERMINATION DEFINED.—In this
11
Act, the term ‘‘covered determination’’ means—
12
(1) a determination by the President, not later
13
than 24 hours after a military invasion of Taiwan by
14
the People’s Liberation Army or any of its proxies,
15
that such an invasion has occurred; or
16
(2) the enactment of a joint resolution pursuan
[Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]