TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A bipartisan bill was introduced in the US Senate on Tuesday to expedite arms sales to Taiwan by granting it the same treatment as NATO Plus countries in weapons deals.

Senators Pete Ricketts and Chris Coons unveiled the Providing Our Regional Companions Upgraded Protection in Nefarious Environments (PORCUPINE) Act, per CNA. The bill aims to simplify the arms sales process under the US Arms Export Control Act by reducing the time required for formal congressional notification and raising the monetary thresholds by including Taiwan in the "NATO Plus" category for weapons deals.

For NATO Plus countries, including Japan, Australia, South Korea, Israel, and New Zealand, the US president must notify Congress 15 days in advance if a major defense article exceeds US$25 million (NT$754 million). In contrast, countries outside the group require a formal notification at least 30 days before issuing a Letter of Offer and Acceptance for sales exceeding US$14 million.

The legislation would also authorize the secretary of state to establish an expedited approval process to facilitate the transfer of US defense articles and services to Taiwan. These transfers could come through various channels, including US grants, foreign military sales, and direct commercial sales.

Ricketts said that during his visit to Taiwan, he saw a partner ready and willing to defend itself in the face of surging Chinese aggression. “However, our antiquated arms sales process and struggling defense industrial base have prevented Taiwan from getting the weapons it needs in a timely manner,” he added.

Coons said, “Taiwan is on the front lines of a free and open Indo-Pacific, and defending the island and our values requires that we swiftly provide the weapons systems it needs—but in the face of Chinese grey zone pressure and the constant threat of invasion, it takes far too long to deliver these weapons.” 

Coons said passing the bill is “the first of many steps we need to take to update our arms sales process and ensure our Taiwanese partners have what they need to defend themselves.”

In 2017, former Chief of the General Staff Lee Hsi-ming (李喜明) began implementing an asymmetric strategy for Taiwan's defense dubbed the porcupine strategy, per Business Insider. This includes the use of multiple layers of lighter weapons, such as mines, anti-ship missiles, portable air defense systems, and missile corvettes, to inflict a prohibitively high cost on invading PLA forces.