McConnell leads 4 GOP senators in calling for Trump to release Taiwan arms funding

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and three other Republican senators are calling on Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to release billions of dollars in stalled national security assistance for Taiwan, reminding the senior Cabinet officials of their past statements in support of defending Taiwan’s sovereignty.

The senators in a letter dated Wednesday cited the State Department’s intention not to obligate $300 million in foreign military financing, the failure of the Defense Department to obligate $1 billion in funding for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative and the administration’s decision to withhold $14 billion in foreign military sales to Taiwan.

The GOP senators expressed alarm over President Trump’s description of Taiwan as “a very good negotiating chip” in negotiations with Chinese President Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party.

“It is difficult to imagine how the United States might credibly project influence in the Indo-Pacific if the price of keeping up diplomatic appearances is denying our partners key deterrent capabilities,” the senators wrote, drawing a comparison to the fallout from former President Biden’s decision to withhold military assistance to Ukraine before a summit meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2021.

“Individually, instances of delayed or denied assistance test the strength of a security relationship you have described as essential,” the senators wrote.

“Together, despite your personal assurances earlier this year that Taiwan is not on the table in talks between President Trump and President Xi, they leave us with serious concerns about the strength of U.S. commitments to key partners and allies in Asia and across the globe,” they added.

Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) also signed the letter.

McConnell, who led the effort, is the chair of the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee. McConnell returned to the Senate this month after a long health-related absence.

The senators asked Rubio to explain why the State Department has not obligated $300 million in appropriated funding for Taiwan and asked Hegseth to explain why the Defense Department has not obligated $1 billion in funding for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative.

The GOP senators reminded Rubio that he previously played a “vocal role” in “marshalling congressional support for deeper and more unflinching security cooperations with Taiwan.”

And they noted to Hegseth that he once declared that the United States “will not let our allies and partners be subordinated and intimidated” and that “the threat China poses is real.”

The senators sent the letter to Rubio and Hegseth ahead of a two-day summit in Washington between Trump, Xi and senior U.S. and Chinese officials.