VIDEO: Sen. Cruz Highlights 'Friends & Allies Tour' Throughout Indo-Pacific

HOUSTON, Texas - U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today released a video highlighting his ‘Friends & Allies Tour,' which included visits to Pearl Harbor, Tokyo, Taiwan, New Delhi, and Hong Kong. Watch the video here.

While in Taiwan, Sen. Cruz called into CNBC's ‘Squawk Box' and discussed his tour and the Chinese Communist Party's efforts censor American citizens through economic blackmail and coercion. He also participated in a press conference with Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaushieh Joseph Wu. While in Hong Kong, Sen. Cruz appeared on CBS's ‘Face the Nation' where he discussed his meetings with Hong Kong protest leaders, dissidents, and activists, as well as the need to combat China's tyrannical actions throughout the region and the world.

CNN: US Sen. Ted Cruz rips Beijing 'dictatorship' during Hong Kong visit
"US Sen. Ted Cruz on Saturday condemned China's handling of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, saying suppression of free speech in the territory showed fear from what he called a ‘dictatorship' in Beijing. ‘The Chinese Communist government, I believe, is terrified of the protesters in the streets in Hong Kong,' the Texas Republican told reporters at an afternoon meeting at the US consul general's residence in the Chinese special administrative region. ‘President Xi is terrified of millions of people in Hong Kong but even more than that millions of people in China yearning to live free.' The 2016 US presidential candidate was dressed head to toe in black, in what he called a sign of solidarity with Hong Kong protesters -- men and women, boys and girls, he said -- who have adopted that as their de facto uniform. ‘A protester has power that makes the dictatorship tremble,' Cruz said, comparing a man shot in the chest by a Hong Kong police officer last week to the protester who stared down a column of tanks in Tiananmen Square during the 1989 anti-government protests."

Reuters: HK leader ditches meeting Ted Cruz, says the U.S. senator
"Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam scrapped a meeting with U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, the highest profile U.S. politician to visit the city since anti-government protests broke out more than four months ago, the senator said on Saturday. Lam's office had requested that the afternoon meeting be completely confidential and that Cruz refrain from speaking with the media about it, Cruz told journalists in Hong Kong. ‘She seems to misunderstand how free speech operates, and also how freedom of the press operates,' said Cruz, a Republican senator from Texas and a vocal critic of China who was stopping in Hong Kong for two days as part of a regional tour."

Hong Kong Apple Daily: Cruz: the Hong Kong people are in the interest of the United States
"Cruz said that he was wearing all black clothes and walked with the demonstrators. ‘The things that are happening in Hong Kong are very encouraging. We have seen more than 2 million people on the streets for freedom, democracy, and the suppression of the Chinese government. I think It is in the interest of the United States to support Hong Kong people.'"

Hong Kong Free Press: ‘We are not afraid': Over a thousand Hongkongers protest gov't use of emergency law
"Meanwhile, US Senator Ted Cruz arrived in Hong Kong on Saturday, according to the group Hong Kong Autonomy Action which seeks US help in Hong Kong affairs. The group held signs that read ‘Senator Ted Cruz, thanks for helping us!' whilst welcoming him. Cruz arrived after a trip to Taiwan, where he met Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. Cruz is one of the most high profile US politicians to voice support for the Hong Kong protests."

Breitbart: Hong Kong Protesters Fly Taiwan's Flag on Its National Day
"Taiwan's National Day commemoration was attended by Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), the first sitting American senator to attend the event in Taipei in 35 years. ‘At this time, when the eyes of the world are focused on Hong Kong and the brutal repression of Hong Kong, the stakes of fighting for democracy and fighting for freedom are that much more important, and that is what Taiwan rightly symbolizes for the world,' Cruz said at a meeting with President Tsai."

Taiwan News: US senator attends Taiwan's National Day ceremony for first time in 35 years
"US Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), the first sitting U.S. senator to attend Taiwan's National Day ceremony in 35 years, joined Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu at a press conference at Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel in Taipei on Wednesday (Oct. 9), just before Taiwan's National Day celebration. Cruz expressed his support for a Free Trade Agreement with Taiwan, which he noted is the U.S.'s 11th largest trade partner, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He also called the relationship between the two countries "incredibly important" in both economic and military aspects, saying he hopes to see Taiwan participate in the Rim of the Pacific Exercise, the U.S.-led international naval exercise that is the largest of its kind in the world."

Taipei Times: Taiwan-US relations ‘incredibly important': Cruz
"Taiwan-US relations are "incredibly important" in diplomatic, military and economic areas, as well as regarding efforts by the two sides to defend human rights and freedom, US Senator Ted Cruz said in Taipei yesterday. One of the most outspoken supporters of Taiwan, Cruz is the first US senator to attend Double Ten National Day celebrations in 35 years, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu said as he welcomed Cruz at a news conference at the Shangri-La Hotel. This is a time when the world's attention is focused on Hong Kong, where people demonstrate their courage as they stand up for democracy and freedom, said Cruz, a member of the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. People in Taiwan and Hong Kong are important, as ‘the Chinese government is terrified by the idea of freedom,' he said, adding that Beijing also hopes the world will forget the Tiananmen Massacre in 1989."

Fox News: Ted Cruz commends Taiwan's stand against 'communist oppression' as China censorship controversies rage
"Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, commended Taiwan's stand against ‘Chinese communist oppression,' in a video tweeted Thursday, as multiple controversies have swirled around U.S. companies allegedly acquiescing to China's restrictive speech rules. Standing in Taiwan's ‘Liberty Square,' Cruz congratulated the Taiwanese people on their national day, known as ‘Double 10 Day,' and extolled the relationship between the United States and Taiwan. Cruz has been traveling in Asia this week; he visited Japan on Wednesday. ‘I'm here in Taiwan in Chaing Kai-shek square, also known as Liberty Square, celebrating the people of Taiwan who stand up against Chinese communist oppression and stand up for freedom,' he said. ‘America is proud to be allies with the people of Taiwan.'"

The Hindu: China is the most significant geopolitical threat: U.S. Senator Ted Cruz
"Senate Foreign Relations Committee Member says U.S. has been urging allies and friends not to allow Chinese surveillance. India will risk losing intelligence from the U.S. if it allows Chinese telecom major Huawei to be part of its 5G infrastructure, a U.S. Republican Senator said during a visit to Delhi that coincided with Chinese President Xi Jinping's arrival in Chennai. Texas Senator Ted Cruz, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who also plays a crucial role in the U.S. reaction to developments in J&K, told The Hindu that while ‘legal questions' were for India to resolve internally, escalating India-Pakistan tensions were a cause for worry in America. ‘The U.S. has made it clear that it would be severely constrained in sharing intelligence with any nation that installs Huawei equipment; that undermines U.S. national security and that of any country that installs it,' asserted Mr. Cruz, who also met Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Commerce Secretary Anup Wadhawan and business chambers in the capital."

Pen News: India appreciates US role in countering terrorism
"‘New Delhi, Oct 11: India and the US on Friday discussed ways to further strengthen the bilateral defence relationship and the former appreciated the role played by the US in countering terrorism. US Senators Ted Cruz (Republican - Texas) and Maggie Hassan (Democrat - New Hampshire) called on Defence Minister Rajnath Singh here. During the meeting, Mr Singh expressed satisfaction over the progress made in the partnership between both the nations. The Defence minister termed US as the world's oldest democracy and one of the most important and trusted partners of India. Saying that India-US cooperation has seen tremendous growth in the last five years, Mr Singh expressed hope that the strategic partnership will expand and flourish further in the coming years."

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