BOISE, Idaho – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today released the following statement after President Biden’s remarks last night regarding Taiwan and the White House’s subsequent clarification:
“The administration is sending confusing messages on Taiwan. Words are important, and we can’t be careless in how we talk about an issue that is so vital to U.S. interests and the security of the Info-Pacific.
“We must act decisively on our commitments under the Taiwan Relations Act that bolster deterrence in the Indo-Pacific. That means we must get asymmetric capabilities to Taiwan more quickly, increase training and exchanges that demonstrate readiness, sustain our own capacity to resist force and coercion in the Western Pacific, and not abandon long-held U.S. nuclear declaratory policy that has served us well for decades.
“We need more concrete actions from the administration in support of Taiwan, and additional steps from Taiwan itself to deter China.”
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