US President Joe Biden on Friday agreed to provide US$571.3 million in defense support for Taiwan, the White House said, while the US State Department approved the potential sale of US$265 million in military equipment.
Biden had delegated to the secretary of state the authority “to direct the drawdown of up to US$571.3 million in defense articles and services of the Department of Defense, and military education and training, to provide assistance to Taiwan,” the White House said in a statement.
However, it did not provide specific details about this latest package, which was the third of its kind to Taiwan after the US$567 million and US$345 million in aid packages announced on Sept. 30 and on July 28 last year respectively.
Photo: AP
The US is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties between Washington and Taipei.
China has stepped up military pressure against Taiwan, including daily military activities near the nation and two rounds of war games this year.
Separately, the Pentagon said the US State Department had approved the potential sale to Taiwan of about US$265 million in command, control, communications and computer modernization equipment.
In a news release, the Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said it delivered the required certification, notifying the US Congress of the latest arms sale on Friday.
The proposed arm sale includes the MIDS JTRS Variant 5, an enhancement to the Link-16 tactical data link system, for an estimated cost of US$265 million, the DSCA said.
The system would enhance Taiwan’s “communications and network security for its command, control, communications, and computers capabilities,” it said.
Among the items were MK 75-76mm gun mounts and related equipment for an estimated cost of US$30 million, the DSCA said in another news release.
The gun mounts would improve Taiwan’s “capability to meet current and future threats by providing surface and air defenses onboard various ships in inventory,” it added.
In Taipei, the Ministry of National Defense yesterday thanked the US for “its firm security commitment to Taiwan.”
“Taiwan and the United States will continue to cooperate closely on security issues to maintain peace, stability and the status quo across the Taiwan Strait,” the ministry said it a statement.
It said it would not comment on the “content” of the assistance “based on the tacit agreement between Taiwan and the United States.”
The US continues to implement its policy of “normalizing” arms sales to Taiwan and is fulfilling its steadfast commitment and support for helping to enhance Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities and resilience, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Additional reporting by AFP and CNA
AIR SUPPORT: The Ministry of National Defense thanked the US for the delivery, adding that it was an indicator of the White House’s commitment to the Taiwan Relations Act Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) and Representative to the US Alexander Yui on Friday attended a delivery ceremony for the first of Taiwan’s long-awaited 66 F-16C/D Block 70 jets at a Lockheed Martin Corp factory in Greenville, South Carolina. “We are so proud to be the global home of the F-16 and to support Taiwan’s air defense capabilities,” US Representative William Timmons wrote on X, alongside a photograph of Taiwanese and US officials at the event. The F-16C/D Block 70 jets Taiwan ordered have the same capabilities as aircraft that had been upgraded to F-16Vs. The batch of Lockheed Martin
GRIDLOCK: The National Fire Agency’s Special Search and Rescue team is on standby to travel to the countries to help out with the rescue effort A powerful earthquake rocked Myanmar and neighboring Thailand yesterday, killing at least three people in Bangkok and burying dozens when a high-rise building under construction collapsed. Footage shared on social media from Myanmar’s second-largest city showed widespread destruction, raising fears that many were trapped under the rubble or killed. The magnitude 7.7 earthquake, with an epicenter near Mandalay in Myanmar, struck at midday and was followed by a strong magnitude 6.4 aftershock. The extent of death, injury and destruction — especially in Myanmar, which is embroiled in a civil war and where information is tightly controlled at the best of times —
Taiwan was ranked the fourth-safest country in the world with a score of 82.9, trailing only Andorra, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar in Numbeo’s Safety Index by Country report. Taiwan’s score improved by 0.1 points compared with last year’s mid-year report, which had Taiwan fourth with a score of 82.8. However, both scores were lower than in last year’s first review, when Taiwan scored 83.3, and are a long way from when Taiwan was named the second-safest country in the world in 2021, scoring 84.8. Taiwan ranked higher than Singapore in ninth with a score of 77.4 and Japan in 10th with
China's military today said it began joint army, navy and rocket force exercises around Taiwan to "serve as a stern warning and powerful deterrent against Taiwanese independence," calling President William Lai (賴清德) a "parasite." The exercises come after Lai called Beijing a "foreign hostile force" last month. More than 10 Chinese military ships approached close to Taiwan's 24 nautical mile (44.4km) contiguous zone this morning and Taiwan sent its own warships to respond, two senior Taiwanese officials said. Taiwan has not yet detected any live fire by the Chinese military so far, one of the officials said. The drills took place after US Secretary