為達最佳瀏覽效果,建議使用 Chrome、Firefox 或 Microsoft Edge 的瀏覽器。

請至Edge官網下載 請至FireFox官網下載 請至Google官網下載
晴時多雲

限制級
您即將進入之新聞內容 需滿18歲 方可瀏覽。
根據「電腦網路內容分級處理辦法」修正條文第六條第三款規定,已於網站首頁或各該限制級網頁,依台灣網站分級推廣基金會規定作標示。 台灣網站分級推廣基金會(TICRF)網站:http://www.ticrf.org.tw

《TAIPEI TIMES》US officials reiterate arms delivery vow

US Representative Michael McCaul, left, chairman of the US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, interacts with Legislative Speaker You Si-kun at a news conference at the legislature in Taipei yesterday.
Photo: Carlos Garcia Rawlins, Reuters

US Representative Michael McCaul, left, chairman of the US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, interacts with Legislative Speaker You Si-kun at a news conference at the legislature in Taipei yesterday. Photo: Carlos Garcia Rawlins, Reuters

2023/04/08 03:00

‘CRITICALLY IMPORTANT’: US Representative Michael McCaul said expediting the delivery of the weapons he has approved is vital, as Taiwan is constantly threatened

By Liu Tzu-hsuan / Staff reporter

The US Department of State on Thursday vowed to ensure timely delivery of arms sold to Taiwan, a promise echoed by a top US official at the legislature in Taipei yesterday.

On Wednesday, US House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy told a news conference after his meeting with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library near Los Angeles that the US “must continue the arms sales to Taiwan and make sure such sales reach Taiwan on a very timely basis.”

US Representative Mike Gallagher, who chairs the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, told the same event that he would look for ways to get Harpoon anti-ship missiles to Taiwan ahead of those scheduled to go to Saudi Arabia.

Asked about the statements at a separate news conference on Thursday, US Department of State spokesman Vedant Patel said that “the US government is actively reviewing our policies and processes to ensure that we move arm sales as quickly as possible, particularly for Taiwan.”

The US provides Taiwan with “defense articles and services necessary to enable and maintain a sufficient self-defense capability” in line with its Taiwan Relations Act, Patel said.

However, “I’m not going to just get ahead of any specific processes just yet,” he said.

Peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait are global interests, he said, calling on Beijing to “cease its military, diplomatic and economic pressure against Taiwan, and instead engage in meaningful diplomacy.”

In Taipei yesterday, US Representative Michael McCaul, chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, told lawmakers that it is important to harden Taiwan by enhancing and reprioritizing sales of weapons to the nation.

Expediting the delivery of the weapons he has signed off on “is critically important,” as Taiwan is a high-risk area that is constantly threatened, McCaul told a news conference.

McCaul is leading a cross-party delegation on a three-day visit to Taiwan. The delegation is to meet with Tsai today after her scheduled return from the US yesterday.

Third-party sales are also an option, McCaul said, adding that “we are doing everything in our power to exercise this” delivery to provide deterrence for Taiwan and promote peace in the region.

The House Committee on Foreign Affairs last year passed the Arms Exports Delivery Solutions Act, requiring the US state and defense departments to report to the US Congress on transfers of defense articles and services, including approved transfers to Taiwan.

The committee is to uncover reasons for any delivery delays and “will expedite ways to provide the arms that Taiwan needs to defend yourself,” US Representative Young Kim, who introduced the act with McCaul, said at the legislature.

新聞來源:TAIPEI TIMES

不用抽 不用搶 現在用APP看新聞 保證天天中獎  點我下載APP  按我看活動辦法

焦點今日熱門
看更多!請加入自由時報粉絲團

網友回應

載入中
此網頁已閒置超過5分鐘,請點擊透明黑底或右下角 X 鈕。