[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 19 (Monday, January 29, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E101-E102]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TAIWAN'S AVIATION ROUTES

                                  _____
                                 

                              HON. TED POE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, January 29, 2018

  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, the United States has long maintained 
an important and

[[Page E102]]

strategic partnership with Taiwan. As our tenth largest trading partner 
and a critical geopolitical counterbalance to Chinese expansionism, 
Taiwan deserves the full attention of our government.
  On January 4, 2018, China's civil aviation authority unilaterally 
announced that it would activate four air routes along its southeast 
coast near Taiwan, consisting of the M503 route and three east-west 
extension routes. These new air routes endanger aviation safety and 
threaten the delicate cross-strait status quo between China and Taiwan. 
China's newly declared air routes also violate International Civil 
Aviation Organization regulations and international norms. This 
unilateral action risks stoking instability in an already tense region 
and demonstrates China's bullying behavior towards its smaller 
neighbors.
  Our relationship with Taiwan is crucial for preserving Taipei's 
independence and maintaining the beacon of liberty in East Asia. We are 
Taiwan's largest foreign investor and third largest trading partner. 
Over the years, the United States has provided Taiwan with billions of 
dollars in defense equipment to deter repeated Chinese aggression. Let 
us not forget that China is not a free society and has for decades 
aspired to subjugate Taiwan to its communist rule.
  If we do not challenge Chinese unilateral action at each juncture, 
Beijing's influence, military power, and economic might are sure to 
dominate the region--dimming the prospect of freedom for millions. Our 
allies in the region and our strategic interests are threatened by 
China's campaign of expansion. Right now, Taiwan and the greater region 
look to the United States to check the aggressive, communist regime in 
China. China's incursion on Taiwanese air routes echoes its seizure of 
international waters in the South China Sea as well as its territorial 
disputes with our Indian and Japanese allies.
  The United States should act to restore consultations between Chinese 
and Taiwanese authorities regarding aviation routes. We should target a 
rollback of China's aviation routes to the status quo and allow Taiwan 
to negotiate for an agreement on this controversial airspace. Small and 
subtle incursions on Taiwan by China should not be mistaken as 
insignificant. They represent a larger Chinese strategy to intimidate 
neighbors and bend international order towards its will. We must stand 
firm with our allies and block Beijing's efforts to dominate the 
region. And that's just the way it is.

                          ____________________