More US arms sales to Taiwan are in the pipeline with four deals yet to be notified to Congress, a senior Taiwanese defence official said, following the announcement of a US$11bil (RM44.6bil) package last month, the largest ever for the island.
The United States is Taiwan’s most important international backer and arms supplier, despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties.
China, which claims Taiwan as its territory, held war games around the island in late December after the latest deal was announced.
Speaking to reporters in Taipei following a weekly Cabinet meeting yesterday, Vice Defence Minister Hsu Szu-chien said that four additional packages for Taiwan had yet to be formally notified to the US Congress, the usual process for such sales.
“Don’t ask me what four these are, I cannot say, but there are still four cases yet to be notified to Congress,” Hsu said, adding that he could not say more for legal reasons.
The US State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside Washington business hours.
The announced December arms sales cover eight items, including Lockheed Martin HIMARS rocket systems and Altius loitering munition drones.
In November, President Lai Ching-te unveiled an extra US$40bil (RM162bil) in defence spending to 2033 to underscore Taiwan’s determination to defend itself. — Reuters
