Former Governor of Florida and current U.S. Sen. Rick Scott arrived in Taiwan Thursday afternoon for a three-day visit that will include meetings with top government officials about security and trade issues, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA).
MOFA said in a press statement Thursday that Scott, who took office as the junior senator from Florida following the end of his gubernatorial term in 2019, would meet with President Tsai Ing-wen (???) and Premier Su Tseng-chang (???), as well as hold a virtual talk with Yang Jen-ni (???), deputy head of Taiwan’s Office of Trade Negotiations.
Presidential Office spokesman Xavier Chang (???) said Thursday that Tsai was scheduled to meet with Scott at the Presidential Office on Friday.
Chang also described Scott as “an important force” in the Congress for promoting Taiwan-U.S. relations, noting that the senator had joined initiatives calling on the U.S. government to negotiate a bilateral trade deal with Taiwan.
Both sides will discuss “U.S.-Taiwan relations, regional security, trade and investment, global supply chains, and other significant issues of mutual interest,” the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a separate press release on Thursday.
The senator’s trip to Taiwan is part of a wider visit to the Indo-Pacific region that also includes stops in South Korea and Japan, according to the AIT.
Meanwhile, MOFA said Foreign Minister Joseph Wu (???) would host a banquet to welcome Scott, the seventh U.S. senator to have visited Taiwan this year, following Tammy Duckworth, a member of the Senate Taiwan Caucus, in May, and Lindsey Graham, the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, in April.
These visits by U.S. senators served as a testament to the U.S. Congress’ support for Taiwan, MOFA said, adding that it believed Scott’s visit would benefit the partnership between Taiwan and the U.S. in a variety of fields.
In March, Scott was one of three Republican senators to introduce the Deterring Communist Chinese Aggression Against Taiwan Through Financial Sanctions Act, which proposes imposing financial sanctions on Beijing should it invade, blockade, or enact regime change in Taiwan through the use of force.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel