Former Senator Dowd (pictured), who has a deep friendship with Biden, will lead a delegation to Taiwan on the 13th, and Biden has described him as his “best friend. (Photo taken from the U.S. Senate website senate.gov)
At the request of Biden, former U.S. Senator Todd will lead a delegation to Taiwan today, the first delegation to visit Taiwan since Biden took office. Sources close to the situation said that Todd will meet with President Tsai Ing-wen during his stay in Taiwan, and will also meet with Taiwan’s top national security and diplomatic officials.
Former U.S. Senator Todd visits Taiwan President Tsai receives and hosts dinner on the 15th
Reuters today cited a White House statement that at the request of Joe Biden, former Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) will lead a delegation to Taiwan today to convey the United States’ commitment to Taiwan and its democracy.
The report pointed out that the mission is “unofficial” (unofficial) in nature, is to commemorate the 42nd anniversary of the “Taiwan Relations Act” legislation. The delegation also included former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage and James Steinberg.
The statement quoted in the report said the delegation would meet with senior Taiwanese officials, following a long tradition of high-level, unofficial visits to Taiwan by bipartisan U.S. administrations. The statement also emphasized that “the United States stands with our friends and allies in the Indo-Pacific region to advance shared prosperity, security and values, and that includes deepening our relationship with Taiwan.”
Todd, 76, has a deep friendship with Biden, who has described him as his “best friend” (single best friend). Todd has served in the U.S. Congress for 36 years, the first six years as a member of the House of Representatives, then 30 years as a senator, and Biden has long worked in the Senate. After Biden became the Democratic Party’s prospective presidential candidate last year, Todd was also involved in the selection process for his deputy.
The U.S. side informed the Republic of China government in early March that Biden would send his close friend Todd to Taiwan to convey his longstanding personal friendship with Taiwan and to congratulate him on the 42nd anniversary of the Taiwan Relations Act legislation. Taiwan welcomes Biden’s willingness to send Todd to Taiwan on a special flight and expects to exchange important messages with Biden through this channel.
The source said the delegation will arrive in Taiwan on the 14th and is expected to stay until the 16th, during which it will meet with President Tsai Ing-wen and also with Taiwan’s top national security, diplomatic and defense officials.
The sources said that the Taiwanese side is expected to raise with the delegation members the recent provocative actions of the Chinese Communist Party against Taiwan and the region, and that Taiwan will strive to maintain regional stability, but also expects the U.S. side to continue to enhance its support for Taiwan, including reaching concrete progress in the areas of economic and trade, and security.
In addition, the sources said, Taiwan is also expected to thank the Biden team for its recent moves to make Taiwan friendly, including the release of the latest guidelines for relations with Taiwan on the 9th, which significantly eased restrictions on the two sides’ interactions.
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