00:00Taiwan's smaller opposition party is sending U.S. lawmakers a message that now is the time to codify a set
00:07of decades-old informal guidelines for U.S.-Taiwan relations.
00:12That's as concerns rise over the U.S.'s commitments to Taiwan after the Trump-Shin meeting in Beijing earlier this
00:19month.
00:20These guidelines, known as the Six Assurances, were a set of promises issued by the Reagan administration in 1982.
00:27They detail U.S. positions toward Taiwan on weapons sales and cross-strait relations.
00:33The items include the U.S. continuing arms sales to Taiwan, not consulting China on arms sales to Taiwan, and
00:40not mediating between Taipei and Beijing.
00:43They have been thrown back into the spotlight since U.S. President Donald Trump said he discussed arms sales to
00:50Taiwan with Chinese President Xi Jinping during their summit in Beijing.
00:53Trump later described those sales as a very good negotiating chip in dealings with China.
00:59He also said that these assurances were agreed upon long ago, indicating that he may not see them as a
01:06vital part of his decision-making process.
01:08Trump's post-summit comments have worried some people in Taiwan, which faces growing threats from China.
01:13Several U.S. lawmakers have also expressed concern.
01:16Now, the chair of the Taiwan People's Party, Hwang Kuo-Cang, published an open letter on social media urging U
01:23.S. Congress to go a step further by enshrining the Six Assurances into law.
01:28Hwang said codifying them will send a clear message to Taipei, Beijing and the world that U.S. commitment to
01:34Taiwan remains strong and is durable.
01:37Taiwan's foreign ministry says that it respects the way other sectors care about the country's security and the U.S.'s
01:44commitments to Taiwan.
01:45Taiwan Plus also reached out to the main opposition, Kuomintang, which has not responded as of airtime.
01:51Despite the opposition's recent cuts to Taiwan's special defense budget, Hwang said that he and his party are still avid
01:58supporters of Taiwan's self-defense capabilities.
02:01He said that Taiwan's security cannot and should not be subject to transactional diplomacy.
02:07I'm Yi Sun-Chen and Leslie Liao for Taiwan Plus.
02:10Yes.
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