To require the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, to provide detailed briefings to Congress on any recent discussions conducted between United States Government and the Government of Taiwan and any potential transfer of defense articles or defense services to the Government of Taiwan.

        [Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[H.R. 6646 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

2d Session
H. R. 6646

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

September 24 (legislative day, September 17), 2008

Received

September 26 (legislative day, September 17), 2008

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

AN ACT

To require the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary
of Defense, to provide detailed briefings to Congress on any recent
discussions conducted between United States Government and the
Government of Taiwan and any potential transfer of defense articles or
defense services to the Government of Taiwan.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:
(1) Relations between the United States and Taiwan are
governed by the Taiwan Relations Act (22 U.S.C. 3301 et seq.;
Public Law 96-8), three joint communiques, and the Six
Assurances.
(2) The Taiwan Relations Act has governed United States
arms sales to Taiwan since 1979, when the United States
extended diplomatic recognition to the People's Republic of
China.
(3) The Taiwan Relations Act specifies that it is United
States policy, among other things, to consider any nonpeaceful
means to determine Taiwan's future ``a threat'' to the peace
and security of the Western Pacific and of ``grave concern'' to
the United States, ``to provide Taiwan with arms of a defensive
character'', and ``to maintain the capacity of the United
States to resist any resort to force or other forms of
coercion'' jeopardizing the security or social or economic
system of Taiwan's people.
(4) Section 3(a) of the Taiwan Relations Act states that
``the United States will make available to Taiwan such defense
articles and defense services in such quantity as may be
necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-
defense capability''.
(5) Section 3(b) of the Taiwan Relations Act stipulates
that both the President and the Congress shall determine the
nature and quantity of such defense articles and services
``based solely'' upon their judgment of the needs of Taiwan.
(6) Taiwan has recently reversed a downward trend in
defense spending with a $2.2 billion increase in 2007 to $9.8
billion and the Defense Ministry has requested and the
Executive Yuan approved a 2008 budget of $10.6 billion, an
increase of 15 percent.
(7) According to the Congressional Research Service, the
executive branch has yet to send any arms transfer
notifications to Congress during calendar year 2008, including
notifications on at least seven pending arms sales programs
with a total value of about $11 billion that encompass programs
on a submarine design, Patriot PAC-3 missile defense systems,
and Apache and Blackhawk helicopters.
(8) Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou stated on July 12,
2008, that the island needs to secure defensive weapons from
the United States, despite a warming of relations with mainland
China.
(9) On July 16, 2008, Admiral Timothy Keating, Commander of
the Hawaii-based United States Pacific Command, acknowledged
that the executive branch had imposed a ``freeze'' on arms
sales to Taiwan, a decision that is in contradiction to
longstanding United States law and policy.

SEC. 2. MANDATORY CONGRESSIONAL BRIEFINGS.

(a) Briefings.--Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment
of this Act, and not later than 120 days thereafter, the Secretary of
State, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, shall provide
detailed briefings to Congress on--
(1) any discussions conducted between any executive branch
agency and the Government of Taiwan during the covered period;
and
(2) any potential transfer of defense articles or defense
services to the Government of Taiwan.
(b) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Covered period.--The term ``covered period'' means--
(A) with respect to the initial briefings required
under subsection (a), the period beginning on the date
of the enactment of this Act and ending on the date of
the initial briefings; and
(B) with respect to the subsequent briefings
required under subsection (a), the period beginning on
the day after the date of the initial briefings
required under subsection (a) and ending on the date of
the subsequent briefings.
(2) Executive branch agency.--The term ``executive branch
agency'' has the meaning given the term ``agency'' in section
551(1) of title 5, United States Code.
(3) Defense article.--The term ``defense article'' has the
meaning given the term in section 47 of the Arms Export Control
Act (22 U.S.C. 2794 note).
(4) Defense service.--The term ``defense service'' has the
meaning given the term in section 47 of the Arms Export Control
Act (22 U.S.C. 2794 note).

Passed the House of Representatives September 23, 2008.

Attest:

LORRAINE C. MILLER,

Clerk.