Taiwan to continue buying arms from United States, boosting U.S. jobs

A demonstrator holds flags of Taiwan and the United States in support of Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen during an stop-over after her visit to Latin America in Burlingame, California, U.S., January 14, 2017. REUTERS/Stephen Lam

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan will continue to buy arms from the United States with its purchases boosting employment in at least six U.S. states and narrowing the bilateral trade gap, the government has told the United States, in rare public comment sure to anger China, which claims the island as its own.

Taiwan's military purchases "have boosted the local economy of and employment in states such as Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Utah, Ohio and Pennsylvania," the government said as part of the public comment process for a 90-day trade review being conducted by the United States.