119-hconres8

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 8 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
H. CON. RES. 8

 Expressing the sense of Congress that the United States should resume 
 normal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, negotiate a bilateral free 
 trade agreement with Taiwan, and support Taiwans membership in 
 international organizations.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 February 6, 2025

 Mr. Tiffany (for himself, Mr. Perry, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Ms. 
 Malliotakis, Mr. Ogles, Mr. Gooden, Mrs. Cammack, Mr. Baird, Mr. 
 Grothman, Mr. Stauber, Mr. Weber of Texas, Mr. Wied, Mr. Fitzgerald, 
 Mrs. Harshbarger, Mr. Ellzey, Mr. McCormick, Mr. Fleischmann, Mr. 
Meuser, Mr. Gimenez, Ms. Boebert, Mr. Williams of Texas, Mr. Feenstra, 
Mr. Garbarino, and Mr. Nunn of Iowa) submitted the following concurrent 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and 
 in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
 of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
 concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

 CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

 Expressing the sense of Congress that the United States should resume 
 normal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, negotiate a bilateral free 
 trade agreement with Taiwan, and support Taiwans membership in 
 international organizations.

Whereas the people of Taiwan have established a free, open, pluralistic, and 
 democratic society;
Whereas the people of Taiwan have conducted successive democratic Presidential 
 elections yielding several peaceful transfers of power, successive 
 parliamentary elections, multiple nationwide referenda, and numerous 
 local elections;
Whereas Taiwan and its outlying islands have never been under the jurisdiction 
 or control of the Communist regime in Beijing, which continues to 
 illegitimately claim sovereignty over Taiwan and its people;
Whereas Communist China has weaponized the so-called ``One China Policy'' to 
 block Taiwan's membership and full participation in international 
 organizations and events ranging from the United Nations and the World 
 Health Organization to the Olympic Games;
Whereas the so-called ``One China Policy'' is obsolete, does not serve the 
 people of Taiwan or the United States, and fails to reflect the obvious 
 reality that Taiwan has been a sovereign and independent country for 
 over 70 years;
Whereas Taiwan maintains diplomatic, cultural, and economic links with several 
 countries around the world, demonstrating its clear and indisputable 
 independence from the People's Republic of China;
Whereas Taiwan and the United States maintained normal diplomatic relations and 
 a Mutual Defense Treaty until President Carter abruptly abandoned both 
 without the approval of Congress in 1979;
Whereas Congress responded by adopting the landmark, bipartisan Taiwan Relations 
 Act, codifying in law the basis for continued friendly relations between 
 the people of the United States and Taiwan;
Whereas former President Reagan strengthened ties with Taiwan by issuing the 
 ``Six Assurances'', noting that ``The United States has not altered its 
 position regarding sovereignty over Taiwan'', underscoring that 
 Communist Chinese claims of sovereignty over Taiwan have never been 
 accepted by the United States;
Whereas former President Clinton declared ``that the issues between Beijing and 
 Taiwan must be resolved peacefully and with the assent of the people of 
 Taiwan'';
Whereas President Trump approved the sale of defense articles to Taiwan and 
 signed bipartisan legislation allowing for expanded high-level exchanges 
 and cooperation between Taiwanese and American officials; and
Whereas Taiwan remains a steadfast ally of the United States and a responsible 
 and conscientious member of the international community: Now, therefore, 
 be it
 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That--

    (1) the United States commends the people of Taiwan for 
 their commitment to democracy, civil liberties, and human 
 rights; and

    (2) it is the sense of Congress that--
        (A) the President should abandon the antiquated 
 ``One China Policy'' in favor of a policy that 
 recognizes the objective reality that Taiwan is an 
 independent country not governed by or included within 
 the territory of the People's Republic of China;
        (B) the President should recognize the legitimacy 
 of the democratically elected National Government in 
 Taipei, normalize diplomatic relations between our two 
 nations, appoint a United States ambassador to Taiwan, 
 and receive a Taiwanese ambassador to the United 
 States;
            (C) the President should rescind arbitrary agency 
 guidelines that restrict normal communication and 
 interaction between United States and Taiwanese 
 officials;
            (D) the United States Trade Representative should 
 initiate formal negotiations with Taiwan on the 
 establishment of a United States-Taiwan Free Trade 
 Agreement; and
        (E) the President, the Permanent Representative of 
 the United States to the United Nations, and other 
 relevant United States officials should take steps to 
 advocate for Taiwan's full membership in the United 
 Nations and other international organizations in which 
 the United States is a member.
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