SENATE RESOLUTION 56

(By Senators Blair, Takubo, Baldwin, Prezioso, Plymale, Stollings, Unger, Romano, Beach, Hamilton, Jeffries, Rucker, Tarr, Palumbo, Maynard, Swope, Lindsay, Roberts, Trump, Cline, and Sypolt)

[Introduced February 21, 2019]

Reaffirming the sister-state relationship between the State of West Virginia and Taiwan.

Whereas, The Republic of China (Taiwan) and the United States have enjoyed a long-standing partnership and share the common values of freedom, democracy, and human rights. In 2019, Taiwan ranked as the second-freest country in Asia by Freedom House, and ranked 10th among 180 world economies in terms of economic freedom by the Heritage Foundation, demonstrating the strength and vitality of its democratic system and showcasing Taiwan as a beacon of democracy in the world; and

Whereas, The Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) was signed into law on April 10, 1979, codifying the historically close relations with Taiwan that had existed prior to January 1, 1979, and which serves as the foundation to preserve and promote continued bilateral bonds; and

Whereas, In 1982, President Ronald Reagan further clarified the importance and resilience of the U.S.-Taiwan relationship with the issuance of the Six Assurances, which together with the TRA, are the cornerstones of U.S. policy with respect to Taiwan; and

Whereas, The United States and Taiwan have forged ever closer economic and security relations over the last four decades based on their shared commitment to democracy, the rule of law, and free market principles; with the United States now Taiwan’s second-largest trading partner and second-largest destination of Taiwanese outward investment; and with Taiwan the 11th-largest trading partner of the United States and a key destination for United States agricultural exports; and

Whereas, The State of West Virginia is proud of the sister-state relationship it has enjoyed with Taiwan since August 4, 1980, marked by strong bilateral trade, education, and cultural exchange. In 2017, the bilateral trade between West Virginia and Taiwan amounted to nearly $64 million, making Taiwan our seventh-largest Asian trading partner, demonstrating that Taiwan is not only a friendly sister-state of West Virginia but also an important trading partner; and

Whereas, In the 2017-2018 academic year, 22,454 students from Taiwan studied in the U.S., making Taiwan the seventh-leading place of origin for students coming to the U.S. and contributed more than $824 million to the U.S. economy, through their spending on tuition, accommodation, and living expenses; and

Whereas, West Virginia welcomes all opportunities for an even closer economic partnership to increase the trade and investment and endorses Taiwan’s effort to secure the signing of a U.S.-Taiwan Bilateral Trade Agreement, to boost greater West Virginia exports to Taiwan, and to bring in more Taiwanese investments, such as the $34 million project which Far Eastern New Century Corporation introduced in 2018; and

Whereas, Taiwan has been proven to be a very valuable contributor in a broad range of global issues, and it is necessary to be granted access to meaningfully participate in various international organizations including the World Health Organization (WHO), International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL); therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate:

That the Senate hereby reaffirms the sister-state relationship between the State of West Virginia and Taiwan; and, be it

Further Resolved, That the Clerk is hereby directed to forward a copy of this resolution to Mr. Stanley Kao, Representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States.