The US State Department has approved a potential sale of military technical assistance to Taiwan worth an estimated $108 million, the Pentagon said Friday. China has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control, and the democratically-ruled island has complained of increased military pressure from Beijing to try to force it to accept its sovereignty.
The US Department of Defense said the proposed sale serves US national, economic and security interests by supporting Taiwan’s ongoing efforts to modernize its armed forces and maintain a credible defense capability.“The Department of State has adopted a decision approving a possible foreign military sale to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States (TECRO) of technical assistance support to the supplier of an area order and related equipment at an estimated cost of $108 million. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency today issued the required certification notifying Congress of this potential sale,” the US Defense Security Agency said in a statement.
According to the Pentagon, the proposed sale will help improve the recipient’s security and help maintain political stability, military balance, economy and progress in the region. “The proposed sale will contribute to sustaining the recipient’s vehicles, small arms, combat weapon systems, and logistical support items and enhance its ability to meet current and future threats. The proposed sale will contribute to the recipient’s goal of maintaining its military capability while further enhancing interoperability with the United States and other allies,” the statement added.
China, which regards Taiwan as its province despite decades of independent rule, has previously strongly opposed military cooperation between Washington and Taipei. The US-Taiwan defense deal came days after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the one-China principle is the foundation of stability in the Taiwan Strait and warned of “fierce storms” across the region if the principle is “arbitrarily challenged or even sabotaged.” Wang made the remarks when asked about the root cause of current tensions in the Taiwan Strait while delivering a political speech at the ASEAN Secretariat, Xinhua news agency reported.
Wang said history and practice have repeatedly proven that when the one-China principle is fully recognized and strictly adhered to, the Taiwan Strait will remain calm and both sides will enjoy peaceful development. However, when the One China principle is arbitrarily challenged or even sabotaged, dark clouds or even furious storms would appear across the Taiwan Strait. China’s foreign minister pointed out that the United States is constantly distorting and emptying the One China policy and trying to use the “Taiwan card” to disrupt and hinder China’s development process.
