The U.S. State Department has issued new guidelines for government contacts
with Taiwan, which it said will encourage closer engagement and reflect the
two sides' deepening bilateral relationship.

The new guidelines, which were circulated within government agencies but not
released to the public, reportedly allow U.S. officials to hold regular
meetings with Taiwanese counterparts, including at Taiwan's representative
offices in the U.S.

The policy will also allow officials to participate in meetings at the Twin
Oaks, the former residence of Taiwanese ambassadors to the U.S.

According to a State Department spokesman, the new rules "liberalize guidance
on contacts with Taiwan."

The issuance of new formal guidelines on how U.S. officials interact with
Taiwan comes after an order issued by former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
in January, which lifted nearly all restrictions on contacts between the
side.

A diplomatic source told Taiwan's Central News Agency that while both Pompeo
and Secretary of State Antony Blinken favor expanding contacts with Taiwan,
some U.S. officials had expressed uncertainty about Pompeo's decision to
remove all guidance on the subject.

Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said it welcomed the guidelines
as "the turning of a new page" in the Taiwan-U.S. relationship, and that it
expected them to lead to closer engagement.