TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A bill introduced three years ago calling on the U.S. to put an end to the "one China" policy and restore diplomatic relations with Taiwan has gained 50 backers in Congress.

In 2020, Congressman Tom Tiffany and Congressman Scott Perry introduced a bill that called for the U.S. to abandon the "one China" policy, resume formal relations with Taiwan, and begin negotiations on a U.S.-Taiwan free trade agreement. As of November 2022, the bill had gained 28 additional cosponsors, all of whom are Republicans.

In a press release on Monday (Nov. 13), Tiffany's office announced that over the past year, 20 more Republican representatives had given their approval, bringing the total to 50. Tiffany described this as a milestone indicating the increasing support in Congress to recognize Taiwan as a free, democratic, and independent country.

Tiffany was cited in the release as saying, "It is long past time for U.S. policy to reflect the objective reality that Taiwan has never been under the control of the People’s Republic of China or part of its territory for even a single day." He added that this milestone demonstrates that "momentum is growing to turn the page on this failed 1970s-era policy."

Despite the Taiwan Relations Act and "Six Assurances," Tiffany said the U.S. lacks official relations with Taiwan, "inexplicably treating" the country's democratically elected government in the same diplomatic manner it deals with "brutal regimes in North Korea and Iran." He claimed the U.S. lumped Taiwan in the same category as those states while normalizing relations with "Cuba's dictatorship."