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WASHINGTON—Today, House Armed Services Committee Member Jim Banks announced the Taiwan Weapons Export Act, legislation to fast-track delivery of critical weapons to Taiwan by expediting Congressional approval and eliminating administrative roadblocks. The bill is companion legislation to Senator Josh Hawley’s bill in the Senate.

Said Rep. Banks: “China breached Taiwan’s airspace a record number of times in 2021. House Republicans can’t let Joe Biden repeat the same mistakes he made in Ukraine. You can’t deter an invasion after it happens and Congress and the Biden administration should be entirely unified around the need to send Taiwan defensive weaponry to dissuade Xi from starting a war of aggression.”

Find the bill text here.

Overview of the Taiwan Weapons Export Act

• Redesignate Taiwan as a member of Country Group A:5 under the Export Administration Regulations alongside other U.S. allies and partners, including NATO member states, Japan, Australia, South Korea, and India.
• Expedite licensing approval and remove other administrative barriers for arms sales to Taiwan.
• Reduce the length of Congressional review of arms sales to Taiwan by half.

Rep. Banks is one of Congress’s leading advocates for our democratic ally Taiwan. In May, Rep. Banks led a letter to Joe Biden calling on him to uphold “unequivocally and publicly” our nation’s commitment to the security of the island of Taiwan in the event of Chinese military aggression.

Rep. Banks chairs the Republican Study Committee. Last Thursday, the RSC released its FY2023 budget, which dedicates an entire section to defending Taiwan, and which calls for expedited lethal aide to Taiwan, including, Stinger Missiles, Naval Strike Missiles and Quickstrike air-dropped sea mines.

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