A bipartisan group of senators is pushing legislation to encourage travel to and from Taiwan, a move that could irritate China as the Trump administration looks to tighten relations with Beijing amid the ongoing situation with North Korea.
The bill, titled the Taiwan Travel Act, which Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., also introduced in September, would encourage visits between U.S. and Taiwanese officials and be a follow-up to the Taiwan Relations Act, which was passed in 1979 and redefined relations between the two countries. However, it comes at a crucial time for President Trump, who continues to push Chinese President Xi Jinping to help solve the issues between the U.S. and North Korea.
In January, Trump told Xi that he will honor the One-China policy — in which Washington acknowledges there is only one Chinese government and that Taiwan is part of China — after surprising the Chinese by speaking with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen after his November victory. Since then, the initially chilly relationship between Washington and Beijing has thawed, leading Trump to call on Xi to help with the North Korea issue as Pyongyang continues to test ballistic missiles.
However, the Taiwan issue continues to crop up as Trump spurned a suggested phone call by the president of Taiwan because of the North Korea issue. Rubio, however, believes the two issues are not mutually exclusive.
“Obviously, the administration is trying to encourage the Chinese to be more aggressive and do more, with regards to North Korea and to the extent China can play a productive role in that regard. I would support that,” Rubio told the Washington Examiner. “I don’t think that in any way should change our position towards Taiwan.”
The bill encourages visits between U.S. and Taiwanese officials instead of placing restrictions on them and extends the invitation to Cabinet-level national security officials, general officers and other executive branch officials. Rubio himself has been a longtime supporter of Taiwan. During Tsai’s visit to the U.S. in June, weeks after her election, she met with Rubio in Miami.
Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., a former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, believes the legislation should not be an issue despite the One-China policy and says he doesn’t see it as problematic despite the potential conflicts at play. Menendez, one of five co-sponsors to the bill, is a co-chairman of the Senate Taiwan Caucus.
“We have the Taiwan Relations Act. We think that that still governs,” Menendez said. “I don’t think that the type of travel we’re talking about violates that One-China policy or the essence of the Taiwan Relations Act, so I don’t see it as problematic as some others do.”
“As it relates to timing, you’ve got a new administration in Taiwan. It’s an opportunity,” Menendez said. “I understand that he is trying to develop an engagement with China, who can play a major role on North Korea, which I applaud him for trying to achieve. So right now holding the status quo for the purposes of whether China’s truly going to help us with North Korea or not is something that I understand.
“The whole relationship with Taiwan has always been tough to straddle,” he added.
Along with Menendez, Sens. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, Cory Gardner, R-Colo., and Gary Peters, D-Mich., are also co-sponsoring the Rubio legislation.
Despite the legislative push, Rubio said he has not talked to the White House about the bill yet. However, he sees a chance it could move through the Senate, at least due to the bipartisan support it could draw.
“I do,” Rubio said when asked if it has a chance to pass. “There’s a lot of support for Taiwan in the Congress — particularly in the Senate — so I do believe it has a chance to pass.”
