Taiwan Urges Continued US Arms Support After Trump Signals Hesitation on New Deal
Taipei-Taiwan on Saturday defended continued US weapons sales to the island as a critical deterrent against regional threats after US President Donald Trump said he had not yet decided whether to approve a major new arms package.
The remarks introduced fresh uncertainty into Washington’s long-standing security support for Taiwan following Trump’s summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday.
Despite lacking formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, the United States remains the island’s principal international backer and is legally obligated under the Taiwan Relations Act to provide defensive weapons.
In a statement, spokesperson Karen Kuo for Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te said China’s growing military pressure represented the primary destabilizing factor in the Indo-Pacific region and the Taiwan Strait.
“Military sales between Taiwan and the US are not only a reflection of the US security commitment to Taiwan as stipulated in the Taiwan Relations Act, but also serve as a mutual deterrence against regional threats,” Kuo said.
Taiwan thanked Trump for what Kuo described as his continued support for security in the Taiwan Strait and said Taipei would continue strengthening cooperation with Washington.
Reuters previously reported that a second US arms package for Taiwan valued at around $14 billion remains pending presidential approval after the Trump administration approved a record $11 billion package in December.
Speaking in Taipei, Deputy Foreign Minister Chen Ming-chi declined to comment directly on the pending package because it has not been formally announced, but said Taiwan remained in communication with US officials.
Taiwan’s opposition-controlled parliament has delayed the government’s broader effort to secure an additional $40 billion in defense spending. Earlier this month lawmakers approved roughly two-thirds of the requested amount, earmarking it specifically for US arms purchases.
Republican and Democratic lawmakers in Washington have publicly urged the Trump administration to maintain weapons sales to Taiwan amid growing Chinese military activity near the island.
Trump also suggested after meeting Xi that he could speak directly with Lai regarding the proposed arms sale, saying he would need to talk with “the person … that’s running Taiwan.”
Chen said Taipei was still attempting to understand the “true intent” behind Trump’s comments.
A senior Taiwanese security official, speaking anonymously because of the sensitivity of the issue, said discussions over arms sales should involve Taiwan rather than Beijing.
China claims Taiwan as its territory and has never ruled out the use of force to bring the island under its control. Beijing has rejected repeated offers of talks from Lai, whom Chinese officials label a separatist.
Kuo reiterated Taiwan’s long-standing position that the Republic of China, Taiwan’s formal name, is “a sovereign, independent democratic country.”
Chinese military operations around Taiwan continued during Trump’s visit to Beijing, according to Taiwanese officials, as tensions over the island’s future remained a central flashpoint in US-China relations.
