1.Congress finds the following:
(1)The Taiwan
Relations Act (22 U.S.C. 3301 et seq.; Public Law 96–8) is the cornerstone of
relations between the United States and Taiwan, which is also governed by the
three joint communiqués and the Six Assurances.
(2)The Taiwan
Relations Act has governed United States arms sales to Taiwan since 1979, when
the United States extended diplomatic recognition to the People’s Republic of
China.
(3)The Taiwan
Relations Act specifies that it is United States policy, among other things, to
consider any nonpeaceful means to determine Taiwan’s future a
threat
to the peace and security of the Western Pacific and of
grave concern
to the United States, to provide Taiwan
with arms of a defensive character
, and to maintain the capacity
of the United States to resist any resort to force or other forms of
coercion
jeopardizing the security or social or economic system of
Taiwan’s people.
(4)Section 3(a) of
the Taiwan Relations Act states that the United States will make
available to Taiwan such defense articles and defense services in such quantity
as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense
capability
.
(5)Section 3(b) of
the Taiwan Relations Act stipulates that both the President and the Congress
shall determine the nature and quantity of such defense articles and services
based solely
upon their judgment of the needs of Taiwan.
(6)Taiwan in March
2009 issued its first Quadrennial Defense Review, a robust, defense-oriented
strategy that aims to shape the regional security environment and deter
conflict while transforming the military into a leaner, more efficient fighting
force with sustainable capabilities, thereby helping to demonstrate that Taiwan
has the resolve and commitment to successfully strengthen its own
defenses.
(7)According to the Congressional Research
Service, the executive branch has yet to send any arms transfer notifications
to Congress for Taiwan during calendar year 2009, including notifications for
Blackhawk helicopters, diesel submarine design, and additional Patriot PAC–3
systems, nor has it yet transferred the OSPREY class minehunter coastal ships
ORIOLE (MHC–55) and FALCON (MHC–59), even though Congress authorized the sale
of these ships in calendar 2008 in the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of
2008 (Public Law 110–229).
(8)Taiwanese
President Ma Ying-jeou has reiterated his administration’s desire to acquire
United States built F–16 C/Ds and other weapons on many public occasions,
including in an April 22 address to the United States by teleconference to mark
the 30th anniversary of the Taiwan Relations Act and a statement issued during
a May 26 transit stop in the United States on his way to Central America for a
diplomatic visit.
(9)Taiwanese
President Ma Ying-jeou also stated on October 2, 2009, that Although
there are pragmatic improvements in cross-strait ties, this doesn’t mean we can
let our guard down.
.
(10)As highlighted in
the March 2009 Department of Defense annual report to Congress on China’s
military, China’s armed forces are rapidly developing coercive
capabilities … [that] could in the future be used to pressure Taiwan toward a
settlement of the cross-Strait dispute on Beijing’s terms while simultaneously
attempting to deter, delay, or deny any possible U.S. support for the island in
case of conflict.
.
2.Mandatory
congressional briefings
(a)Not
later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act and at least
annually thereafter, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary
of Defense, shall provide detailed briefings to Congress on—
(1)any discussions
conducted between any executive branch agency and the Government of Taiwan
during the covered period; and
(2)any potential
transfer of defense articles or defense services to the Government of
Taiwan.
(b)In
this section:
(1)The term covered period
means, with respect
to—
(A)the initial
briefing required under subsection (a), the period beginning on the date of the
enactment of this Act and ending on the date of such initial briefing;
and
(B)subsequent
briefings required under such subsection, the period beginning on the day after
the date of the most recent briefing and ending on the date of any such
subsequent briefing.
(2)The term executive branch agency
has the
meaning given the term agency
in section 551(1) of title 5,
United States Code.
(3)The term defense article
has the meaning
given the term in section 47 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C.
2794).
(4)The term defense service
has the meaning
given the term in section 47 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C.
2794).