In an era of international relations where politics and policies seem to change by the hour, there are few truths that have proven self-evident for decades. But here's one: The security of Taiwan has been central to peace and stability in the world.
I believe this to my core. That's why, yesterday, I arrived in Taiwan—the first United States Senator to visit since Donald Trump and Xi Jinping's summit—to deliver a strong message: that regardless of what president or party is in the White House, the U.S. Congress's commitment to Taiwan is steadfast. It's concrete. And it can save lives.
I myself saw this in 2021. Amid the chaos and the question marks of the COVID crisis, I advocated straight to the Biden Administration that Taiwan be among the first of our international partners to receive vaccines. I felt strongly about this for two reasons. First, because Taiwan had helped us—stepping up to provide our nation with masks and other protective equipment when we had had a critical shortage in the months prior.
Second, because at that time, in the middle of a global pandemic when people were dying by the hour, the People's Republic of China was actively blocking Taiwan from accessing vaccines, threatening companies that if they sold to the island, they would lose access to the PRC market as a whole.
The U.S. had to stand up to the PRC's life-threatening coercion.I knew Senator Chris Coons and our Republican counterpart Senator Dan Sullivan would agree. And soon, we found ourselves flying across Asia, trying to get some much-needed aid to Taiwan's much-deserving people.
Now, I'm back again in the same spirit of U.S. commitment to Taiwan, ready to relay that same idea—that same ideal.
The people of Taiwan know that Congress has long been a critical pillar of our partnership. We passed the Taiwan Relations Act, which reinforced the United States' commitment to peace and security in the Taiwan Strait, reaffirming that that commitment will not be subject to the shifting priorities of any single administration.
In today's climate, those stakes are only growing.
As a Pacific nation, the United States' security runs through the Indo-Pacific, and that global security is inextricably linked with what's happening in the Taiwan Strait.
Any conflict here would quickly impact not only Taiwan and the immediate region, but also the global economy and stability around the world. The world's most important shipping routes for critical technologies would be disrupted. The AI revolution would come to a halt. Assembly lines for everything from cars to smartphones to laptops to home appliances would grind to a standstill. Financial markets would panic. Stock markets would crash, taking with them many families' savings and investments. This must not come to pass.
We're at our strongest when we work together with our allies and partners to coordinate our efforts to protect that stability.
That's why Congress consistently reaffirms that the longstanding, bipartisan support to Taiwan must continue. In fact, Republicans and Democrats alike urged President Trump to advance a $14 billion arms sales package to Taiwan that Congress had already pre-approved before the Trump-Xi summit. And we are still beating this drum to this day.
Taiwan's leaders and citizens across all parties agree about the need to invest in Taiwan's deterrence and are taking critical steps to do just that.
While we work to make sure that this bipartisan arms package becomes a reality, I'm pushing ahead on many other ways to continue to expand our cooperation and find new avenues to enhance our existing partnerships. The U.S.-Taiwan connections are vast and layered, and I'm working to enhance our collaboration wherever I can.
Beyond traditional arms sales, I'm working to advance the defense strategies that Taiwan needs, like leveraging asymmetric capabilities that can be faster, cheaper and more agile to meet pressing security concerns, such as exploring innovation around drones. Taiwan already has the technical manufacturing capability to grow and excel in this space, and our respective industries can work together to advance new opportunities for co-production with our drones at sea, air or undersea.
I've also advocated for new ways of thinking around whole-of-society resilience, which leaders in Taiwan have embraced and made impressive strides forward. This comes from my own background and experience serving in the Reserve Forces, where as a citizen Soldier I learned how to use my skills to take care of my community during natural disasters, while being ready for whatever I might be called to do in armed conflict.
And I've pushed for allies and partners in this region and around the world to shore up their medical cooperation—to ensure we can all draw on each other's medical facilities, infrastructure, supplies and capabilities in case of any emergency.
Just as the commitment to the U.S.-Taiwan friendship is strong and bipartisan in the U.S. Congress, I look forward to continuing the strength of that friendship across parties in Taiwan as well.
Our security depends on it. （Related： A Routine Capitol Visit Exposes How Taiwan Misreads Its Own Diplomacy ｜ Latest ）
