WASHINGTON – On Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, joined U.S. Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and 50 of their Senate colleagues in a bipartisan letter to President Joe Biden urging the Administration to include Taiwan in negotiations for the proposed Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF). In addition to recognizing Taiwan’s importance to the United States as an important trading partner, the senators underscored that failing to include Taiwan in IPEF runs counter to U.S. economic interests in the region.

“IPEF can be a meaningful first step for the United States to assure its allies and partners that we are economically engaged in the region, which accounts for sixty percent of the world economy and two-thirds of all economic growth over the last five years. For IPEF to be a useful vehicle to advance a free and open Indo-Pacific, however, we must make sure that all of America’s regional allies and partners are included. This is just one necessary aspect to ensuring the framework is competitive in a region already saturated with economic treaties and agendas,” said the senators.

In addition to requesting that the Biden administration engage with the Committee on the issue and provide a briefing on economic security policy toward Taiwan, the senators also underscored that excluding Taiwan would significantly distort both the regional and global economic architecture.

“The more economic engagement U.S. and allies and partners have with Taiwan, the stronger our collective resilience against coercion. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shows the value of tangible economic support by the United States and like-minded allies and partners, and the same is true for Taiwan. Including Taiwan in the IPEF would be an invaluable signal of our rock-solid commitment to Taiwan and its prosperity and freedom,” the senators continued. 

Sen. Johnson and Jim Risch were joined on the letter by Chairman Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Senators John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Ben Sasse (R-Neb.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), John Thune (R-S.D.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Todd Young (R-Ind.)

The full text of the letter can be found here.

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