US President Joe Biden on Sunday approved US$567 million in defense assistance for Taiwan, the White House said.
While the US does not officially recognize Taiwan diplomatically, it is Taipei’s key partner and a major provider of weapons — a point of consternation for Beijing, which has repeatedly called on Washington to stop arming the nation, which it claims is part of its territory.
The White House in a brief statement said that Biden had delegated the US secretary of state “to direct the drawdown of up to US$567 million in defense articles and services of the Department of Defense, and military education and training, to provide assistance to Taiwan.”
Photo: AP
The package is nearly twice the size of the US$345 million in defense support approved in July last year.
However, the statement did not provide specific details about the latest package.
In a Defense News report published on Sept. 21, an unnamed US official was quoted as saying the package would “fund training, stockpiles, anti-armor weapons, air defense and multi-domain awareness.”
It would also include drones, which are key to the US’ and Taiwan’s “asymmetric” strategy to defend the nation against China’s much larger military, the report said.
The Pentagon is working on a third aid package for Taiwan and the Biden administration plans to complete it before the end of its term in January next year, the report added.
The US in April approved billions of US dollars in military aid for Taiwan in the face of an increasingly assertive China.
China maintains a near-daily presence of fighter jets, drones and warships around Taiwan.
Additional reporting by CNA
RESPONSE: The transit sends a message that China’s alignment with other countries would not deter the West from defending freedom of navigation, an academic said Canadian frigate the Ville de Quebec and Australian guided-missile destroyer the Brisbane transited the Taiwan Strait yesterday morning, the first time the two nations have conducted a joint freedom of navigation operation. The Canadian and Australian militaries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Ministry of National Defense declined to confirm the passage, saying only that Taiwan’s armed forces had deployed surveillance and reconnaissance assets, along with warships and combat aircraft, to safeguard security across the Strait. The two vessels were observed transiting northward along the eastern side of the Taiwan Strait’s median line, with Japan being their most likely destination,
GLOBAL ISSUE: If China annexes Taiwan, ‘it will not stop its expansion there, as it only becomes stronger and has more force to expand further,’ the president said China’s military and diplomatic expansion is not a sole issue for Taiwan, but one that risks world peace, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that Taiwan would stand with the alliance of democratic countries to preserve peace through deterrence. Lai made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). “China is strategically pushing forward to change the international order,” Lai said, adding that China established the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, launched the Belt and Road Initiative, and pushed for yuan internationalization, because it wants to replace the democratic rules-based international
RELEASED: Ko emerged from a courthouse before about 700 supporters, describing his year in custody as a period of ‘suffering’ and vowed to ‘not surrender’ Former Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) was released on NT$70 million (US$2.29 million) bail yesterday, bringing an end to his year-long incommunicado detention as he awaits trial on corruption charges. Under the conditions set by the Taipei District Court on Friday, Ko must remain at a registered address, wear a GPS-enabled ankle monitor and is prohibited from leaving the country. He is also barred from contacting codefendants or witnesses. After Ko’s wife, Peggy Chen (陳佩琪), posted bail, Ko was transported from the Taipei Detention Center to the Taipei District Court at 12:20pm, where he was fitted with the tracking
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
RSS