Part of the package is a $665 million radar system (roughly the same amount in euros) that will help Taiwan locate incoming missiles in time. If the deal goes through, it would be the first time in nearly two years that so many weapons have moved from the United States to Taiwan, according to Bloomberg News.
The US State Department said the arms shipments would not provide Taiwan with new military capabilities. However, the White House said that “Taiwan’s self-defense capacity remains very high,” which notes “increasing pressure from China.” since then Prominent US politician Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan last month (+) China has carried out various military activities throughout the island nation.
Earlier this week, China said it “strongly opposes the sale of US weapons to the Chinese territory of Taiwan.” Beijing also threatened countermeasures on Friday if the United States did not abandon the deal. A spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington said: “China will firmly take the legitimate and necessary countermeasures.” She added that the arms package “would seriously threaten relations between Washington and Beijing.”
China views Taiwan as a breakaway province, not an independent country.
The US Congress has yet to approve the arms sale. This is not expected to pose any problems, as both Republicans and Democrats will vote in favor of the proposal.
