Taiwan to continue contacts with US on arms sales — Jerusalem Post
According to the Jerusalem Post, Taiwan will maintain close contact with the United States to implement the planned arms sales. Taiwan’s Deputy Ministry of Defense spokesperson Chiao Fu-chun said this in Tainan ahead of the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington this week.
Taiwan’s position
Chiao Fu-chun called maintaining security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region a shared interest of democratic states. According to him, the US government and Congress have repeatedly expressed support for Taiwan’s ability to defend itself.
“Therefore, we will continue to maintain close contact with the US Department of War and will further facilitate the implementation of arms sales according to plan,” the defense official said.
Deliveries and domestic production
China considers democratically governed Taiwan to be its territory and has repeatedly demanded that US arms sales to the island be stopped. In December, Trump approved an $11 billion arms sales package for Taiwan, the largest by value. In May, after a visit to Beijing, he said that a second package with an estimated value of $14 billion had been postponed.
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Xi Jinping is expected to raise the issue of halting such deliveries during his meeting with Trump. At the same time, Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te supported Trump’s call for US allies to increase defense spending.
The United States remains Taiwan’s main arms supplier, while Taiwan is also developing its own programs to produce submarines, fighter jets and long-range missiles. On Wednesday, Taiwan’s military demonstrated a new eight-wheeled armored vehicle with a 105-mm gun during live-fire exercises and also displayed US-made Lockheed Martin HIMARS rocket systems.
Military activity around the island
China has never renounced the use of force to establish control over Taiwan, and its military operates near the island almost daily. Taiwan’s government rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims, stating that only Taiwan’s residents can determine their future.
