Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) thanked members of a US congressional
delegation for their long-term support of Taiwan at a luncheon in Taipei
yesterday.

Members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee's subcommittee on Asia and the
Pacific met with President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) and other officials yesterday.

The delegation's head, Young Kim (金映玉), urged the Legislative Yuan to quickly
pass a bill to fund the procurement of domestically produced drones.

According to the Taipei Times, she noted to journalists that her visit
followed close on the heels of joint Chinese and Russian naval patrols that
were intended to "intimidate the free people of the Indo-Pacific."

She added that drones are central to warfare in the 21st century and
expressed the hope that the legislature could "send a strong demand signal to
build and buy as many drones as possible, and do it quickly."

Lin Chia-lung said in a news release this morning that he told Kim that
Taiwan won't seek provocation, but won't yield to China's escalating military
and economic coercion either.

CNA_zh_JvW