Washington, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR)\u2014a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and past Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC)\u2014partnered with U.S. Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX), Andy Kim (D-NJ), and John Curtis (R-UT) to introduce bipartisan legislation that expands cooperation between the United States and Taiwan on the development of unmanned arial systems (UAS) in the face of the People\u2019s Republic of China (PRC)\u2019s increasing pressure on Taiwan and the PRC\u2019s dominance in the UAS supply chain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
El Blue Skies for Taiwan Act <\/em>promotes the development, production, and deployment of secure, resilient UAS to enhance American national security and support the defense and resilience of Taiwan, a longstanding and vital democratic partner for the United States in the Indo-Pacific region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOur longstanding partnership with Taiwan demands the United States use all the tools at our disposal to strengthen Taiwan\u2019s security and counter China\u2019s coercive tactics,\u201d <\/strong>dijo Merkley. \u201cOur bipartisan effort not only protects American strategic interests and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, but it also ensures that Taiwan is well-equipped to develop unmanned aerial systems in support of its own defense and our national security. As Beijing escalates its pressure campaign, American support for Taiwan will remain ironclad.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Chinese Communist Party expends countless resources to erode the status of our Taiwanese allies and isolate them globally. This legislation will modernize the development and production of unmanned aerial system supply chains, strengthen supply chain integration, and deepen U.S.-Taiwan defense cooperation. It also importantly expands opportunities for collaboration on Blue UAS, including efforts like the Advanced Automation Manufacturing project at Red River Army Depot in Texarkana, Texas. I\u2019m proud to join Senator Merkley in introducing this bill<\/strong>,\u201d said Cruz.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n \u201cDrones are becoming increasingly central to defense systems worldwide \u2014 and the United States and our partners are unprepared to produce them at the necessary scale,\u201d<\/strong> said Kim. \u201cMaking matters worse, the majority of commercially available UAS technology relies on components sourced from China, leaving the U.S. and partners like Taiwan vulnerable to supply chain manipulation. Supporting Taiwan\u2019s UAS manufacturing through this legislation is how we close that gap and secure long-term stability for ourselves and our partners.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n \u201cStrengthening our partnership with Taiwan is critical to advancing both American security and the stability of the Indo-Pacific,\u201d<\/strong> said Curtis. \u201cOur bipartisan legislation expands cooperation between the U.S. and Taiwan to build secure, resilient drone systems\u2014cutting China out of the supply chain and reinforcing deterrence in the region.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n The vast majority of commercially available UAS contain PRC-sourced components, creating significant cybersecurity, supply chain, and operational risks for both Taiwan and the United States. Taiwan is well-positioned to develop and produce UAS components and systems. This bill will identify roadblocks and expand opportunities for the United States and Taiwan to create PRC-independent drone systems and components to supply both Taiwan and U.S. defenses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n el bipartidista Blue Skies for Taiwan Act <\/em>would tackle these challenges by:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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