U.S. House ‘Select Committee on China’ Chairman Gallagher Secretly Visited Taiwan

Mike Gallagher, Chairman of the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, made a secret four-day visit to Taiwan last week, foreign media reported. He met with President Tsai Ing-wen, saying House Speaker McCarthy may visit Taiwan after the early 2024 elections. In response, the Taiwan Foreign Ministry confirmed at a press conference on February 23 that Gallagher’s visit was from the 17th to the 20th of this month. It revealed that he also met with other Taiwanese leaders, including Vice President Lai Ching-te, Secretary-General Wellington Koo of the National Security Council, and Foreign Minister Joseph Wu. Both parties had a good conversation and pledged to work together for democracy, freedom, and peace. This visit was about the same time as the U.S. Congressman Ro Khanna’s delegation to Taiwan from the 19th to the 23rd. Gallagher said in an interview that he wanted to keep his stay quiet in order to expect a more productive meeting with Taiwan, especially after the diplomatic crisis caused by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan last August. Every Taiwanese official he met during this visit mentioned the Russia-Ukraine war as an alarm for Taiwan and realized the necessity of stocking advanced weapons. Since nobody knows when Beijing will attack Taiwan, Gallagher called on the United States to best support Taiwan with weapons to avoid war. The chairman revealed that he plans to hold a hearing in Taiwan before the summer and report back to McCarthy with more information It is said that Speaker McCarthy and Democratic Party African-American leader Hakeem Jeffries will likely visit Taiwan after the 2024 presidential election.