Taipei: The United States has appreciated the initiatives taken by the Taiwan administration to enhance Taiwan’s self-defence through various reforms and investments and encouraged Taipei to further bolster its self-defence, Taipei Times reported. The US “strongly encourages and applauds” the initiatives taken by President William Lai’s administration to enhance Taiwan’s self-defence through various reforms and investments, Ingrid Larson, the managing director of the American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) Washington Office, said.
Larson made these comments on Monday while introducing Vice Minister of National Defence Hsu Yen-pu as the keynote speaker at the annual US-Taiwan Defence Industry Conference held in Philadelphia, Taipei Times reported.
In her address, Larson pointed out that over the past year, Beijing has consistently applied a comprehensive strategy, utilising various diplomatic, military, financial, intelligence, law enforcement, and economic tactics to pressure Taiwan.
She cited the example of Edinburgh, Scotland, which cancelled its plans for a sister city relationship with Kaohsiung due to influence from China. “Such actions are not conducive to promoting people-to-people ties, or the peaceful resolution of cross-strait differences,” she added.
The US “strongly encourages and applauds the Lai administration’s early efforts to continue to bolster Taiwan’s self-defence through reforms and resource investments,” highlighting the proposal to raise Taiwan’s defence budget by nearly 6 per cent next year to approximately USD 20 billion.
Larson said that the US also appreciates Taiwan’s Minister of National Defence, Wellington Koo’s backing for significant defence reforms, which include the creation of a new organisation within the defence ministry modelled after the US Defence Innovation Unit, reported Taipei Times. (ANI)
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