U.S. senator calls for work with allies to protect Taiwan

Washington, April 4 (CNA) U.S. Senator Rick Scott, a republican, called on the U.S. to work with its allies to curb China's clout and protect Taiwan's freedom and security, in an article recently contributed to a media outlet.

Scott was writing in an opinion piece published April 1 in the Washington Examiner, a Washington-based conservative news website and weekly magazine.

China's National People's Congress on March 30 passed sweeping changes to Hong Kong's electoral rules that will tighten its control over the special administrative region.

The changes almost halve the proportion of directly elected representatives in Hong Kong's legislature, which already had limited powers, and require all candidates to be vetted for political loyalty to Beijing.

Commenting on the changes, Scott said in his opinion piece that these represent an end to the "one country, two systems" framework. This system, which for years afforded Hong Kong a high level of autonomy, will no longer exist, he said.

"With communist China's domination of Hong Kong essentially complete, its eyes are already turning to Taiwan. It is now more important than ever for President Joe Biden to work with our allies to contain Beijing's reach and protect the freedom and security of Taiwan," Scott added.

For decades, communist China has threatened Taiwan and lately has done so explicitly in word and deed, according to the article.

China's increasingly frequent actions to harass and intimidate the Taiwanese people, including regular military encroachments on Taiwanese islands and air space, should be concerning for all of the world's democracies, it said.

According to Scott, Communist China's behavior means that the U.S. relationship with Taiwan is more important than ever.