DEFENSE/U.S.-Taiwan Defense Industry Conference begins in Philadelphia

Philadelphia, Sept. 22 (CNA) Representatives from Taiwan's defense ministry and three biggest political parties are attending the 2024 U.S.-Taiwan Defense Industry Conference that began on Sunday in Philadelphia.

Attendees will discuss five main topics during the event, including China's "Grey Zone Activities Targeting Taiwan" and the "Potential Impact of the 2024 U.S. Elections," according to the conference agenda.

Vice Minister Hsu Yen-pu (徐衍璞) is leading a delegation from Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense at the conference where he is scheduled to give a keynote address.

The conference will also feature a speech from the U.S. Department of Defense's (DoD) Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Jedidiah P. Royal.

Taiwan's three major political parties also sent representatives to the event.

Chao Yi-hsiang (趙怡翔), a Taipei city councilor, and Hsiao Shun-wen (蕭舜文), the director of the party's representative office in the U.S., are attending on behalf of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party.

Taiwan's main opposition party, the Kuomintang, is represented by Legislator Hsu Chiao-hsin (徐巧芯), the party's Director of International Affairs Alexander Huang (黃介正), and party member and retired Air Force Lieutenant General Tian Tsai-mai (田再勱).

Lawmaker Huang Shan-shan (黃珊珊) is also attending the event for Taiwan's third-largest political party, the Taiwan People's Party.

The U.S.-Taiwan Defense Industry Conference is held annually by the U.S.-Taiwan Business Council (USTBC), a U.S.-based non-profit organization that aims to promote business ties between the two countries.

This year's three-day conference, held from Sept. 22-24, is "a platform for discussing crucial issues surrounding defense cooperation between the U.S. and Taiwan, aiming to enhance mutual understanding and develop strategic solutions for future challenges," according to the organizer's website.

The conference agenda lists five sessions with titles including "Building Regional and Global Coalitions as a Threat Response," "Resourcing Taiwan's Deterrence & Defense Efforts" and "Beyond a D-Day Style Scenario."

According to the USTBC, the conference -- which has taken place every year since 2002 -- will feature keynote speeches from leading attendees as well as moderator-led discussions.

In a USTBC press release on Friday, Council President Rupert Hammond-Chambers suggested that "U.S. support for Taiwan's material force modernization has been waning since 2021."

"It is unclear why the Biden Administration is steadily reducing the value of arms sales to Taiwan," Hammond-Chambers was quoted as saying, after noting that the dollar amount for "security assistance" has "fallen each year since 2022."

Hammond-Chambers said that, so far, the Biden Administration's "gross arms sales value" is US$5.71 billion, compared to that of the one-term Trump Administration's US$18.28 billion and the two-term Obama Administration's US$13.96 billion.

According to Hammond-Chambers, Washington believes that China -- whose ruling Chinese Communist Party views Taiwan as a part of its territory and seeks to annex the country -- would "soften or change aspects of its behavior" if U.S. material support for Taiwan was reduced.

"That never happened," he said.

Hammond-Chambers, who was elected president of USTBC in 2020 after joining the non-profit organization in 1994, has long since urged the U.S. to do more to boost Taiwan's defense preparedness.

The 2024 U.S.-Taiwan Defense Industry Conference comes around a week after the DoD approved the sale of military goods and services to Taiwan worth around US$228 million on Sept. 17.

Taiwan's defense ministry said in response that the proposed equipment and services -- the 16th Foreign Military Sale from the U.S. since 2020 -- will be useful for "maintaining the combat readiness and safety of various types of aircraft equipment of our Air Force."