According to the US government, the State Department has authorised a potential $100 million (3.3 billion baht) arms transfer to Taiwan in order for the self-ruled island to enhance its Patriot missile defence system in the face of Chinese pressure.
Taiwan has expressed its gratitude for the action, with a representative stating that it is the second weapons sale to the island during the administration of President Joe Biden, who led the United States during the first.
China’s military, political, and economic pressure on Taiwan has been called for by the Biden administration, which also pledged to aid the island in retaining an adequate self-defence capacity of its own. Taiwan is seen by China as a renegade province that must be reunited with the rest of the country.
According to a press release from the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency, the approved sale of equipment and services was in response to a request made by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Washington, which serves as Taiwan’s de facto embassy in the United States, according to the agency.
It was said in a news release that the planned sale “serves US national, economic, and security objectives by helping the recipient’s ongoing efforts to modernise its armed forces and retain a credible defensive capacity.”
Taiwan is expected to deploy the newly acquired technology as a “deterrent to regional threats and to bolster homeland defence,” according to the agency, which did not specifically mention China in its statement.
According to the CIA, the prime contractors will be Raytheon Technologies Corp. and Lockheed Martin Corp. if the legislation is passed by Congress.
