Taiwan reacts with moderate optimism to US Senate's Travel Act

Taiwan on Thursday reacted with "cautious optimism" to the US Senate passing an act which would make it easier for high officials to move freely between the two countries.

Presidential office spokesperson Huang Chong-yan said Washington was Taiwan's main ally and the island nation was grateful for the Senate's long-term support, adding that Taiwan would discuss the matter with the US government.

In a debate of the Parliament's Foreign Affairs and National Defence Committee, lawmakers praised the Taiwan Travel Act, which they hope will be signed by US President Donald Trump and converted into a law, although they cautioned that its positive outcomes depended on how it was implemented.

It could also have possible negative effects on bilateral ties with China, the lawmakers warned.

Ruling Democratic Progressive Party lawmaker Tsai Shih-ying said the number of official visits would not go up overnight, Efe news reported.

Another DPP lawmaker, Lo Chih-cheng, warned that China might react in an exaggerated manner to the bill and tensions across the Taiwan Strait could escalate.

Opposition legislator Chiang Chi-chen said that arms sales and US support to Taiwan were matters of negotiations between Washington and Beijing, and the new bill would also be discussed.

The Chinese government has lodged a formal complaint with Washington over the bill, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said in a press conference, adding that the Senate's vote violated the One China policy.

She added that the policy was the political basis for bilateral relations between the US and China.

--IANS

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