[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 80 (Thursday, May 19, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3033-S3034]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

                                 ______
                                 

 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 38--REAFFIRMING THE TAIWAN RELATIONS ACT 
    AND THE SIX ASSURANCES AS CORNERSTONES OF UNITED STATES-TAIWAN 
                               RELATIONS

  Mr. RUBIO (for himself, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Brown, and Mr. 
Gardner) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:

                            S. Con. Res. 38

       Whereas the Cold War years cemented the close friendship 
     between the United States and Taiwan, with Taiwan as an anti-
     Communist ally in the Asia-Pacific;
       Whereas United States economic aid prevented Taiwan from 
     sliding into an economic depression in the 1950s and greatly 
     contributed to the island's later economic takeoff;
       Whereas Taiwan has flourished to become a beacon of 
     democracy in Asia and leading trade partner for the United 
     States, and the relationship has endured for more than 65 
     years through many shifts in Asia's geopolitical landscape;
       Whereas the strong relationship between the United States 
     and Taiwan is based on mutually beneficial security, 
     commercial, and cultural ties;
       Whereas Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Susan Thornton 
     stated in her testimony before the Committee on Foreign 
     Affairs of the House of Representatives on February 11, 2016, 
     that ``the people on Taiwan have built a prosperous, free, 
     and orderly society with strong institutions, worthy of 
     emulation and envy'';
       Whereas Deputy Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken stated 
     on March 29, 2016, that with Taiwan's January 2016 elections, 
     ``the people of Taiwan showed the world again what a mature, 
     Chinese-speaking democracy looks like'';
       Whereas, on January 1, 1979, when the Carter Administration 
     established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic 
     of China (PRC), it ended formal diplomatic ties with the 
     Republic of China on Taiwan;
       Whereas the United States Congress acted swiftly to 
     reaffirm the United States-Taiwan relationship with the 
     enactment of the Taiwan Relations Act (Public Law 96-8) just 
     100 days later, ensuring the United States maintained a 
     robust and enduring relationship with Taiwan;
       Whereas the Taiwan Relations Act was enacted on April 10, 
     1979, codifying into law the basis for continued commercial, 
     cultural, and other relations between the United States and 
     Taiwan;
       Whereas the Taiwan Relations Act was enacted ``to help 
     maintain peace, security, and stability in the Western 
     Pacific,'' all of which ``are in the political, security, and 
     economic interests of the United States and are matters of 
     international concern'';
       Whereas the United States Congress significantly 
     strengthened the draft legislation originally submitted by 
     the Executive Branch to include provisions concerning 
     Taiwan's security in the Taiwan Relations Act;
       Whereas then-Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Kin Moy 
     stated in his testimony before the Committee on Foreign 
     Affairs of the House of Representatives on March 14, 2014, 
     that ``[o]ur enduring relationship under the Taiwan Relations 
     Act represents a unique asset for the United States and is an 
     important multiplier of our influence in the region,'' and 
     credited the Taiwan Relations Act for having ``played such a 
     key part in protecting Taiwan's freedom of action and United 
     States interests the last 35 years in the Asia-Pacific 
     area'';
       Whereas then-Special Assistant to the President and 
     National Security Council Senior Director for Asian Affairs 
     Evan Medeiros noted in March 2014, ``The Taiwan Relations Act 
     is an important and it's an enduring expression to the people 
     of Taiwan about our commitment to their well-being, their 
     security, their economic autonomy, and their international 
     space.'';
       Whereas the Taiwan Relations Act states that ``the United 
     States decision to establish diplomatic relations with the 
     People's Republic of China rests upon the expectation that 
     the future of Taiwan will be determined by peaceful means'';
       Whereas the Taiwan Relations Act states that it is the 
     policy of 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 that would jeopardize the security, or the social or 
     economic system, of the people on Taiwan'';
       Whereas each successive United States Administration since 
     the enactment of the Taiwan Relations Act has provided arms 
     of a defensive character to Taiwan;
       Whereas a 2015 Department of Defense report to Congress on 
     Military and Security Developments Involving the People's 
     Republic of China stated that, ``Preparing for potential 
     conflict in the Taiwan Strait remains the focus and primary 
     driver of China's military investment'';
       Whereas the United States has an abiding interest in the 
     preservation of cross-Strait peace and stability, and in 
     peace and stability in the entire Asia-Pacific region;
       Whereas, on July 14, 1982, as the United States negotiated 
     with the People's Republic of China over the wording of a 
     joint communique related to United States arms sales to 
     Taiwan, President Ronald Reagan instructed his representative 
     in Taiwan, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director James 
     R. Lilley, to relay a set of assurances

[[Page S3034]]

     orally to Taiwan's then-President Chiang Ching-kuo;
       Whereas testimony before the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives immediately after the issuance of the August 
     17, 1982, Joint Communique with the People's Republic of 
     China, then-Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and 
     Pacific Affairs John H. Holdridge stated on behalf of the 
     Executive Branch that--
       (1) ``. . .[w]e did not agree to set a date certain for 
     ending arms sales to Taiwan'';
       (2) ``. . .[w]e see no mediation role for the United 
     States'' between Taiwan and the PRC'';
       (3) ``. . .[n]or will we attempt to exert pressure on 
     Taiwan to enter into negotiations with the PRC'';
       (4) ``. . .[t]here has been no change in our longstanding 
     position on the issue of sovereignty over Taiwan'';
       (5) ``[w]e have no plans to seek'' revisions to the Taiwan 
     Relations Act; and
       (6) the August 17 Communique ``should not be read to imply 
     that we have agreed to engage in prior consultations with 
     Beijing on arms sales to Taiwan'';
       Whereas these assurances, first delivered to Taiwan's 
     president by AIT Director Lilley, have come to be known as 
     the Six Assurances;
       Whereas in testimony before the Committee on Foreign 
     Affairs of the House of Representatives on October 4, 2011, 
     then-Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell stated that 
     the ``Taiwan Relations Act, plus the so-called Six Assurances 
     and Three Communiques, form the foundation of our overall 
     approach'' to relations with Taiwan; and
       Whereas, in testimony before the Committee on Foreign 
     Relations of the Senate on April 3, 2014, Assistant Secretary 
     of State Daniel Russel stated that the Six Assurances 
     ``continue to play an important part as an element of our 
     approach to Taiwan and the situation across the strait'': 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) affirms that the Taiwan Relations Act and the Six 
     Assurances are both cornerstones of United States relations 
     with Taiwan; and
       (2) urges the President and the Secretary of State to 
     affirm the Six Assurances publicly, proactively, and 
     consistently as a cornerstone of United States-Taiwan 
     relations.

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