U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), who is a member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, met with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen at the Presidential Office in Taipei Friday.
Senator Blackburn also met with Foreign Minister Joseph Wu at the Taipei Guest House and then Wellington Koo, Secretary General of Taiwan’s National Security Council.
Later, Blackburn delivered remarks at Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) Institute of Diplomacy and International Affairs (IDIA) and meeting with the American Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan.
“The United States and Taiwan have a strong partnership, and I appreciate President Tsai’s leadership. Now more than ever, we cannot let Communist China dictate who can visit or support our freedom-loving partner,” said Senator Blackburn of the meeting. “My visit to Taiwan is an important step to ensuring the Indo-Pacific Region’s continued success against the New Axis of Evil. In Congress, I am helping to lead the effort to increase military support to Taiwan and strengthen security for Pacific Island nations. The White House needs to follow suit by ensuring that the CCP cannot accomplish their goal of regional isolation. I will not be silenced by Communist China, and I will not stop fighting for global freedom.”
In her remarks, Blackburn spoke about increasing support for Taiwan.
“Something we focus on in the Senate Armed Services Committee is modernizing the American military and preparing our troops for the future fight, as opposed to the fight we wish we were facing,” she said; adding, “I know that Taiwan is in the middle of its own debate over military modernization, and that President Tsai is pushing for a much-needed shift toward an asymmetric strategy.”
Blackburn continued, “China’s continued aggression in and around Taiwan’s territory is just one example of why a defense-focused force is so critical to maintaining the safety and security of the region. [China President] Xi Jinping and his military leaders are not prone to making spur of the moment decisions; they planned for this moment, and they were just waiting for an excuse to bully Taiwan. They are clearly testing Taiwan’s resolve, and the rest of the world’s tolerance for even more imperialist violence.”
“Most of you probably know that in May, President Biden signed the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act into law, which gave him the authority to provide defense aid to Kyiv and other governments in Eastern Europe. At the end of July, I introduced similar bicameral and bipartisan legislation which would allow a U.S. President to expedite similar types of military aid to Taipei,” said Blackburn.
“In addition to providing those defense articles, this legislation would strategize U.S. defense policy in support of Taiwan, require comprehensive reporting on what Taiwan needs to defend itself, and give us a clearer picture of what the threat from the PLA actually appears to be,” she said.
The visit by the senior senator from Tennessee comes on the heels of weeks of protest by the Chinese government, who say the attention by American lawmakers run afoul of their “One China” policy.
Watch Blackburn’s full statement:
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Aaron Gulbransen is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected]. Follow Aaron on GETTR, Twitter, Truth Social, and Parler.
Following local protocol is expected
Too many Americans hv no idea how complex our defensive operations are. Supply lines are vulnerable to more than disruption.
I hv my issues w. Sen. Blackburn, until there is a more conservative candidate she is ours
Awww that’s cute. Marsha again proving she can’t walk and chew gum at the same time. We have President Dementia writing checks like it’s his money. The FBI completely out of control, and this twit can only muster photo ops and talking points.
TN GOP needs to get their crap together, we have a missing Dist 5 candidate and a useless sitting senator.
Under the impression her constituents are in Taiwan, Marsha plans a series of town halls to make up for the last 5 1/2 years
Given that her hosts are masked, one can assume she was following diplomatic protocol as a responsible representatatice of the United States government should. Kudos to Senator Blackburn for behaving responsibly and not acting like a small minded twit who wants to make a stupid point about masks rather than focus on the larger issue.
I am so disappointed when I read comments about the first woman senator from Tennessee. I had the great privilege of working in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Venezuela in the 90’s. These are people who looked to the USA and were happy to work alongside us. Their fear of losing their country and the freedom is real. We have already lost two to communism. This is not something to joke about. Should we lose power in the midterms, we are facing our own demise. Senator Blackburn is brave.
Waste of taxpayer money
I cannot take anyone with a face diaper on seriously and I refuse to listen to anyone with a rag on their face.
I am sure that her trip is critical to our national security. I truly believe that she just wanted a free vacation to the Far East at taxpayer expense. I want to hear what she accomplished there. She sure as heck has not accomplished much of anything here. That is not true. She has accomplished getting face time on a lot of TV shows.
Why is she wearing the Cult Mask?