U.S. congressional delegation visits Taiwan

Taipei, May 27 (CNA) A delegation from the United States House of Representatives, led by Bruce Westerman (R-AR), chair of the House Committee on Natural Resources, began a three-day visit to Taiwan on Tuesday as part of a broader tour of the Indo-Pacific.

The delegation is scheduled to meet with President Lai Ching-te (賴清德), Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) and Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) to discuss issues concerning bilateral relations, regional security, and energy and economic cooperation, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said in a news release on Tuesday.

The American Institute in Taiwan said in a separate statement that the group's visit "underscores the United States' commitment to its partnership with Taiwan and reaffirms our shared commitment to strengthening a Free and Open Indo-Pacific."

Accompanying Westerman on the visit from Tuesday to Thursday are House of Representatives members Sarah Elfreth (D-MD), Harriet Hageman (R-WY), Celeste Maloy (R-UT) and Nick Begich (R-AK), all of whom are also members of the House Natural Resources Committee.

MOFA, meanwhile, described Westerman as a staunch supporter of Taiwan in the U.S. Congress and said it looks forward to continuing close cooperation with both the legislative and executive branches of the U.S. government to deepen the Taiwan-U.S. partnership.

Westerman's group was one of several foreign delegations to visit Taiwan in the past week, including a British Labour Party delegation led by Member of Parliament Navendu Mishra.

At a dinner with the British delegation on Monday, Taiwan's top diplomat Lin said he hoped to see progress under the Enhanced Trade Partnership (ETP) in areas such as investment, digital trade, energy and net-zero emissions.

Signed in November 2023, the ETP marked Taiwan's first trade framework agreement with a European country and aims to strengthen trade ties between Taiwan and the U.K.