[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 123 (Tuesday, September 14, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1598-E1599]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    U.S.-TAIWAN SECURITY COOPERATION

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. EDWARD R. ROYCE

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 14, 2010

  Mr. ROYCE. Madam Speaker, since the Taiwanese election of President 
Ma Ying-jeou in March 2008, leaders in Beijing and Taipei have promoted 
cross-strait engagement. Yet it

[[Page E1599]]

is important to realize that ``there have been no meaningful actions on 
the part of the mainland, however, to reduce [China's'] military 
presence opposite the island.'' That is a finding of the Pentagon's 
annual report to Congress on Chinese military capabilities, released 
last month.
  With its rapidly expanding arsenal of ships, missiles and aircraft, 
the cross-strait military balance continues to ``shift in the 
mainland's favor,'' according to the report. Indeed, in 2001, China had 
250 missiles aimed at Taiwan. Today that number is over 1,400.
  This summer's Pentagon report comes months after the Defense 
Intelligence Agency concluded that Taiwan's air defenses are showing 
increasing vulnerability due to the aging of its fighter aircraft. 
While China rapidly builds its military forces, Taiwan is struggling.
  To help close this gap, Taiwan has had a pending request to buy 
additional F-16 fighter jets. In May, over 130 members of Congress 
wrote to President Obama and asked that the Administration ``move ahead 
immediately'' with the sale of these airplanes. The Administration is 
still ``studying'' this proposal.
  Taiwan faces one of the most complex and lethal military threats in 
the world. Across the region, in response to China's build-up and 
increasing assertiveness, China's neighbors are moving to strengthen 
their security relationships with the United States. This gravitation 
to the U.S. will only last as long as the U.S. is seen as a credible 
guarantor of stability. Moving forward with this F-16 sale would be an 
appropriate signal to Taiwan, and the region.
  Madam Speaker, if we want cross strait detente to succeed--Taiwan 
will have to do so from a position of strength.

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