US lawmakers call for additional military spending for Taiwan

A bipartisan group of US lawmakers on foreign relations panels on Friday called on the Senate and House leadership to approve additional military spending for Taiwan and Ukraine in the next Congressional budget package, The Hill reported.

Senate Bob Menendez, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and ranking member James Risch have called for $500 million to support Ukrainian troops and another $250 million to support Ukraine’s allies in addition to what was included in the House-passed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

US House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Gregory Meeks and ranking member Michael McCaul joined them in a letter written to Congressional leadership on Thursday, according to The Hill.

The US lawmakers warned of rising tensions in Taiwan which the US fears could be invaded by China and urged the leadership to approve $500 million in emergency appropriations and another USD 1 billion in presidential drawdown spending for Taiwan.

“The threat Taiwan faces is both urgent and unprecedentedly large,” the letter reads as per The Hill.

“As the war in Ukraine has demonstrated, it is imperative that the United States provide partners with strategic, long-term security assistance well in advance of conflict in order to effectively deter, and, when necessary, to respond to acts of aggression.”

The US lawmakers had written letters to US Senate Majority leader Charles Schumer and Senator Minority leader Mitch McConnell and US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.

The US House approved a short-term spending bill on Wednesday to keep the government open until December 23. Last week, the US House passed the $ 847 billion NDAA, which approves programs to spend $10 billion in Taiwan military assistance through 2027 and another $800 million in military assistance for Ukraine.

Only a congressional appropriations bill can authorize the expenditure and decide how the money is approved. In a letter written to Senate and House leadership, leaders of the House and Senate foreign affairs committees called for approval of the full security expenditure, including the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

Notably, tensions started between China and Taiwan after the US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi travelled to Taiwan in August. China raised objections to Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory. China announced military drills around Taiwan over Pelosi’s visit to the island.