Reps. Don Bacon and Chris Pappas have introduced a bill aimed at changing the name of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) in the United States to the “Taiwan Representative Office.” The legislation instructs the Secretary of State to negotiate with TECRO regarding this renaming.
The TECRO currently acts as Taiwan’s representative office in the U.S., functioning as a de facto embassy due to the absence of formal diplomatic relations between the two countries. In Taiwan, its counterpart is known as the American Institute in Taiwan located in Taipei.
The proposed legislation does not seek to re-establish formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan or change the U.S.’s stance on Taiwan’s international status.
“Taiwan is our friend, and we are treating them like second-class people because of the pressure and bullying by China,” stated Rep. Bacon. “We want to elevate what we call their diplomatic facilities and their senior diplomatic representative. Taiwan deserves better from the world’s superpower for freedom.”
Rep. Pappas expressed his support for strengthening ties with democratic allies: “I am committed to standing with all our democratic allies against threats to their security and sovereignty, and we must continue to strengthen our diplomatic partnership with our democratic ally Taiwan as they face continued threats from Xi Jinping’s authoritarian regime.” He added that recognizing Taiwan’s de facto embassy would demonstrate continued support while countering intimidation attempts by Xi Jinping’s government.
