Taiwan's failure to approve the US arms procurement budget has sent a negative message to the US that Washington's commitment to Taiwan's security has been unnecessary, according to Assistant Defense Secretary Richard Lawless.
He made the blunt remark during a closed-door defense industry meeting held in Washington by the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei (AmCham) in the middle of this month.
Lawless told the group that Taiwan would be seen as a burden by its allies if the arms purchase from the US -- three Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missile batteries, 12 P-3C maritime patrol aircraft and eight diesel powered submarines -- continues to be held up by the legislature.
He said the US has yet to see any consistency about national security at the strategic planning level and the arms purchase budget has became a hostage among the different parties.
He said some Americans are impatient and have the impression that Taiwan doesn't care about its own security so a US commitment to it was unnecessary.
He said Taipei doesn't seem to understand how serious a withdrawal of Washington's support for Taiwan's security would be.
He said he hoped that Taiwan would not only swiftly approve the arms deal, but increase its annual military budget.
However, he said if the special arms purchase bill continues to flounder, Taipei might communicate with Washington and seek to get 60 percent of budget passed first.
TRANSLATED BY RICH CHANG
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