A US government spokesperson yesterday refused to confirm a Reuters report that Taiwan is planning a multibillion-dollar weapons purchase from the US to appease the US President Donald Trump administration.
Reuters cited three anonymous sources as saying that Taipei is in talks with Washington over an arms deal worth an estimated US$7 billion to US$10 billion.
Photo: Yimou Lee, Reuters
"The package is meant to demonstrate to the US that Taiwan is committed to its defense," Reuters cited one of the sources as saying.
Asked to comment, the US Department of State said that, as is longstanding practice, Washington does not make any comment until a deal is formalized.
"Consistent with the Taiwan Relations Act, the United States will continue to enable Taiwan's self-defense capabilities. As a matter of policy, we are unable to comment on or confirm potential or pending arms transfers before they are formally notified to Congress," the spokesperson said in an e-mail.
Based on a list of steps provided by the Ministry of National Defense (MND), Taiwan first requests to purchase weapons from the US.
Washington then sends a letter of offer and acceptance (LOA) with more details after the green light is given.
Taipei reviews the offer and completes a procurement proposal before sending the LOA back to Washington.
Various US government branches then review the proposal before the US government notifies Congress of the sale.
The Defense Security Cooperation Agency under the US Department of Defense subsequently makes the deal public.
According to the Reuters report, the deal could include coastal defense cruise missiles and High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, a source was cited as saying.
Taiwan is planning a special budget focused on precision ammunition, air-defense upgrades, command and control systems, reserve force equipment and anti-drone technology, another source told Reuters.
The MND also did not comment on the report.
Taiwan has received more than US$70 million in royalties as of the end of last year from developing the F-16V jet as countries worldwide purchase or upgrade to this popular model, government and military officials said on Saturday. Taiwan funded the development of the F-16V jet and ended up the sole investor as other countries withdrew from the program. Now the F-16V is increasingly popular and countries must pay Taiwan a percentage in royalties when they purchase new F-16V aircraft or upgrade older F-16 models. The next five years are expected to be the peak for these royalties, with Taiwan potentially earning
POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT: Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the meeting next month, Japanese sources said The holding of a Japan-US leaders’ meeting ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to China is positive news for Taiwan, former Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association representative Hiroyasu Izumi said yesterday. After the Liberal Democratic Party’s landslide victory in Japan’s House of Representatives election, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is scheduled to visit the US next month, where she is to meet with Trump ahead of the US president’s planned visit to China from March 31 to April 2 for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the
‘LIKE-MINDED PARTNER’: Tako van Popta said it would be inappropriate to delay signing the deal with Taiwan because of China, adding he would promote the issue Canadian senators have stressed Taiwan’s importance for international trade and expressed enthusiasm for ensuring the Taiwan-Canada trade cooperation framework agreement is implemented this year. Representative to Canada Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) in an interview with the Central News Agency (CNA) said he was increasingly uneasy about Ottawa’s delays in signing the agreement, especially as Ottawa has warmed toward Beijing. There are “no negotiations left. Not only [is it] initialed, we have three versions of the text ready: English, French and Mandarin,” Tseng said. “That tells you how close we are to the final signature.” Tseng said that he hoped Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney
STAY IN YOUR LANE: As the US and Israel attack Iran, the ministry has warned China not to overstep by including Taiwanese citizens in its evacuation orders The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday rebuked a statement by China’s embassy in Israel that it would evacuate Taiwanese holders of Chinese travel documents from Israel amid the latter’s escalating conflict with Iran. Tensions have risen across the Middle East in the wake of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran beginning Saturday. China subsequently issued an evacuation notice for its citizens. In a news release, the Chinese embassy in Israel said holders of “Taiwan compatriot permits (台胞證)” issued to Taiwanese nationals by Chinese authorities for travel to China — could register for evacuation to Egypt. In Taipei, the ministry yesterday said Taiwan
RSS