[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 53 Introduced in House (IH)]
106th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. CON. RES. 53
Concerning the Taiwan Relations Act.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 11, 1999
Mr. Rohrabacher (for himself, Mr. DeLay, Mr. Gejdenson, Mr. Lantos, Mr.
Cox, Mr. Burton of Indiana, Mr. Brown of Ohio, Mr. Smith of New Jersey,
Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Mr. Hunter, Mr. Chabot, and Mr. Tancredo) submitted
the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on International Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Concerning the Taiwan Relations Act.
Whereas April 10, 1999, will mark the 20th anniversary of the enactment of the
Taiwan Relations Act, codifying in public law the basis for continued
commercial, cultural, and other relations between the United States and
Taiwan;
Whereas the Taiwan Relations Act was advanced by Congress and supported by the
executive branch as a critical tool to preserve and promote ties the
American people have enjoyed with the people of Taiwan;
Whereas the Taiwan Relations Act has been instrumental in maintaining peace,
security, and stability in the Taiwan Strait since its enactment in
1979;
Whereas when the Taiwan Relations Act was enacted in 1979, it affirmed that the
United States decision to establish diplomatic relations with the
People's Republic of China was based on the expectation that the future
of Taiwan would be determined by peaceful means;
Whereas officials of the People's Republic of China refuse to renounce the use
of force against democratic Taiwan;
Whereas the recent accelerated defense modernization and weapons procurement
efforts by the People's Republic of China, as documented in the February
1, 1999, report by the Secretary of Defense on ``The Security Situation
in the Taiwan Strait'', could threaten cross-strait stability and United
States interests in the Asia-Pacific region;
Whereas the Taiwan Relations Act provides explicit guarantees that the United
States will make available defense articles and services necessary in
such quantity as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a
sufficient self-defense capability;
Whereas section 3(b) of the Taiwan Relations Act requires timely reviews by
United States military authorities of Taiwan's defense needs in
connection with recommendations to the President and the Congress;
Whereas Congress and the President are committed by Article 3(b) of the Taiwan
Relations Act to determine the nature and quantity of Taiwan's
legitimate self-defense needs;
Whereas the Republic of China on Taiwan routinely makes informal requests to
United States Government officials, which are discouraged or declined
informally by Department of Defense personnel;
Whereas it is the policy of the United States to reject any attempt to curb the
provision by the United States of defense articles and services
legitimately needed for Taiwan's self-defense;
Whereas it is the current executive branch policy to bar most high-level
dialogue regarding regional stability with senior military officials
Taiwan;
Whereas it is the policy set forth in the Taiwan Relations Act to promote
extensive commercial relations between the people of the United States
and the people on Taiwan and such commercial relations would be further
enhanced by Taiwan's membership in the World Trade Organization;
Whereas the human rights provisions in the Taiwan Relations Act helped stimulate
the democratization of Taiwan;
Whereas Taiwan today is a full-fledged multi-party democracy fully respecting
human rights and civil liberties and serves as a successful model of
democratic reform for the People's Republic of China;
Whereas it is United States policy to promote extensive cultural relations with
Taiwan, ties that should be further encouraged and expanded;
Whereas any attempt to determine Taiwan's future by other peaceful means,
including boycotts or embargoes would be considered a threat to the
peace and security of the Western Pacific and of grave concern to the
United States;
Whereas in the spirit of the Taiwan Relations Act, which encourages the future
of democratic Taiwan to be determined by peaceful means, the government
of Taiwan has engaged the People's Republic of China in a cross-strait
dialogue by advocating that peaceful renification be based on a
democratic system of government being implemented on the mainland; and
Whereas the Taiwan Relations Act established the American Institute on Taiwan
(AIT) to carry out the programs, transactions, and other relations
conducted or carried out by the United States Government with respect to
Taiwan and AIT should be recognized for the successful role it has
played in sustaining and enhancing United States relations with Taiwan:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),
That it is the sense of the Congress that--
(1) the United States should reaffirm its commitment to the
Taiwan Relations Act and the specific guarantees of provision
of legitimate defense articles to Taiwan contained therein;
(2) the Congress has grave concerns over China's growing
arsenal of nuclear and conventionally armed ballistic missiles,
the movement of those missiles into a closer geographic
proximity to Taiwan, and the effect that buildup may have on
stability in the Taiwan Strait;
(3) the President should direct all appropriate officials
to raise with officials from the People's Republic of China our
grave concern over China's growing arsenal of conventionally
armed ballistic missiles, the movement of those missiles into a
closer geographic proximity to Taiwan, and the effect that
buildup may have on stability in the Taiwan Strait;
(4) the President should seek from leaders of the People's
Republic of China a public renunciation of any use of force, or
threat to use force, against Taiwan;
(5) the President should provide annually a report
detailing the military balance on both sides of the Taiwan
Strait, including the impact of procurement and modernization
programs underway;
(6) the Secretary of Defense should inform the appropriate
committees of Congress when officials from Taiwan seek to
purchase defense articles for self-defense;
(7) the United States Government should encourage a high-
level dialogue with officials from Taiwan and other United
States allies in East Asia, including Japan, South Korea, and
the Philippines, on the best means to ensure stability, peace,
freedom of the seas, and deterrence in East Asia;
(8) the President should encourage progress in the cross-
strait dialogue between democratic Taiwan and the People's
Republic of China based on Beijing renouncing the use of force
against Taiwan and real progress in a democratic system of
government being implemented on the mainland; and
(9) it should be United States policy in conformity with
Article 4(d) of the Taiwan Relations Act to publicly support
Taiwan's admission to the World Trade Organization forthwith on
its own merits and encourage others to adopt similar policies,
without making such admission conditional on the previous or
simultaneous admission of the People's Republic of China to the
World Trade Organization.
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