August 25, 2022
No. 218
US Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) is scheduled to visit Taiwan from August 25 to 27. During the trip, she will call on President Tsai Ing-wen and National Security Council Secretary-General Wellington Koo and attend a reception hosted by Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaushieh Joseph Wu. The two sides will engage in an extensive exchange of views on Taiwan-US security and trade relations, among other issues. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of the Republic of China (Taiwan) extends a sincere welcome to Senator Blackburn.
Senator Blackburn is a member of the Senate Taiwan Caucus. Her firm friendship with Taiwan goes back to when she served as a member of the House of Representatives. She has put her name to numerous joint statements in support of Taiwan, backed the signing of a Taiwan-US bilateral trade agreement, promoted cooperation on Chinese language education, and supported Taiwan’s participation in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity. In Congress, Senator Blackburn has introduced multiple bills, including the Taiwan Symbols of Sovereignty Act in February 2020 and the Taiwan Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act in July this year. The latter would authorize the US President to lend or lease war supplies to assist Taiwan in strengthening its defense capabilities.
As China continues to escalate its coercion of Taiwan, creating regional tensions, MOFA is very grateful that members of the US Congress are taking concrete steps, such as again visiting Taiwan, to demonstrate firm support and commitment to Taiwan. MOFA is confident that Senator Blackburn’s visit will help further enhance Taiwan-US cooperation across a broad range of areas and deepen the substantive bilateral partnership between the two countries. (E)