•HCON 53 IH
Whereas it is the policy of the United States to reject any
attempt to curb the provision by the United States of de-
fense articles and services legitimately needed for Tai-
wan’s self-defense;
Whereas it is the current executive branch policy to bar most
high-level dialogue regarding regional stability with senior
military officials Taiwan;
Whereas it is the policy set forth in the Taiwan Relations Act
to promote extensive commercial relations between the
people of the United States and the people on Taiwan
and such commercial relations would be further enhanced
by Taiwan’s membership in the World Trade Organiza-
tion;
Whereas the human rights provisions in the Taiwan Relations
Act helped stimulate the democratization of Taiwan;
Whereas Taiwan today is a full-fledged multi-party democ-
racy fully respecting human rights and civil liberties and
serves as a successful model of democratic reform for the
People’s Republic of China;
Whereas it is United States policy to promote extensive cul-
tural relations with Taiwan, ties that should be further
encouraged and expanded;
Whereas any attempt to determine Taiwan’s future by other
peaceful means, including boycotts or embargoes would
be considered a threat to the peace and security of the
Western Pacific and of grave concern to the United
States;
Whereas in the spirit of the Taiwan Relations Act, which en-
courages the future of democratic Taiwan to be deter-
mined by peaceful means, the government of Taiwan has
engaged the People’s Republic of China in a cross-strait
•HCON 53 IH
dialogue by advocating that peaceful renification be based
on a democratic system of government being implemented
on the mainland; and
Whereas the Taiwan Relations Act established the American
Institute on Taiwan (AIT) to carry out the programs,
transactions, and other relations conducted or carried out
by the United States Government with respect to Taiwan
and AIT should be recognized for the successful role it
has played in sustaining and enhancing United States re-
lations with Taiwan: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that—
(1) the United States should reaffirm its com-
mitment to the Taiwan Relations Act and the spe-
cific guarantees of provision of legitimate defense ar-
ticles to Taiwan contained therein;
(2) the Congress has grave concerns over Chi-
na’s growing arsenal of nuclear and conventionally
armed ballistic missiles, the movement of those mis-
siles into a closer geographic proximity to Taiwan,
and the effect that buildup may have on stability in
the Taiwan Strait;
(3) the President should direct all appropriate
officials to raise with officials from the People’s Re-
public of China our grave concern over China’s
growing arsenal of conventionally armed ballistic
missiles, the movement of those missiles into a closer
•HCON 53 IH
geographic proximity to Taiwan, and the effect that
buildup may have on stability in the Taiwan Strait;
(4) the President should seek from leaders of
the People’s Republic of China a public renunciation
of any use of force, or threat to use force, against
Taiwan;
(5) the President should provide annually a re-
port detailing the military balance on both sides of
the Taiwan Strait, including the impact of procure-
ment and modernization programs underway;
(6) the Secretary of Defense should inform the
appropriate committees of Congress when officials
from Taiwan seek to purchase defense articles for
self-defense;
(7) the United States Government should en-
courage a high-level dialogue with officials from Tai-
wan and other United States allies in East Asia, in-
cluding Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines, on
the best means to ensure stability, peace, freedom of
the seas, and deterrence in East Asia;
(8) the President should encourage progress in
the cross-strait dialogue between democratic Taiwan
and the People’s Republic of China based on Beijing
renouncing the use of force against Taiwan and real
•HCON 53 IH
progress in a democratic system of government
being implemented on the mainland; and
(9) it should be United States policy in con-
formity with Article 4(d) of the Taiwan Relations
Act to publicly support Taiwan’s admission to the
World Trade Organization forthwith on its own mer-
its and encourage others to adopt similar policies,
without making such admission conditional on the
previous or simultaneous admission of the People’s
Republic of China to the World Trade Organization.
Æ