TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — U.S. Congressman Tim Tiffany on Wednesday (Sept. 16) introduced a bill calling on the U.S. to put an end to the "one China" policy, resume formal relations with Taiwan, and begin negotiations on a U.S.-Taiwan Free Trade Agreement.
In a press release posted on Thursday, Tiffany pointed out that before 1979, the U.S. and Taiwan maintained normal and friendly diplomatic relations. However, then U.S. President Jimmy Carter suddenly broke off diplomatic relations with Taiwan "without legislative approval" and instead opted to recognize the communist regime in Beijing.
Tiffany stated that Congress later passed the "Taiwan Relations Act" (TRA) as the cornerstone of U.S.-Taiwan economic and cultural relations, while also authorizing the U.S. to sell arms to Taiwan. However, former President Ronald Reagan then "upgraded the relationship" by issuing the "Six Assurances."
Despite these measures, the U.S. still does not formally recognize Taiwan. The congressman lamented that his country is "inexplicably treating" Taiwan’s democratically elected government in the same way it treats the "brutal regimes" in North Korea and Iran.
According to the Concurrent Resolution proposed by Tiffany on Sept.16, the feeling in Congress is the U.S. should resume formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, negotiate and sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA), and support Taiwan in obtaining membership in international organizations. Sending a defiant message to Beijing, Tiffany then wrote, “America doesn’t need a permission slip from the Chinese Communist Party to talk to its friends and partners around the world."
Regarding the "one China" policy that the communist regime has shackled Taiwan and the U.S. with for decades, Tiffany wrote: "Now is the time for America to stop parroting Beijing’s ‘one China’ fantasy, and for U.S. policy to reflect the reality that Taiwan is a free, democratic and independent country."
Referring to Israel's normalized relations with former Arab foes, Tiffany added, "If the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain can normalize relations with Israel, certainly we can formalize our enduring friendship with Taiwan."
https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4011647