Turning Taiwan into another Ukraine

 

Financial Times 

China warned the U.S. that if Washington pushes through with a new batch of weapons sales to Taiwan, it will cancel president Trump’s planned visit to Beijing this April.

The Trump administration is developing a package of four systems for Taiwan to purchase on the heels of the record $11.1bn arms package it unveiled in December, according to eight people familiar with the situation.

China has raised serious concerns about the package ahead of Trump’s planned meeting with President Xi Jinping in April. Three of the people said China had told the US that the arms sales could derail the visit.

Xi raised the Taiwan arms sales issue with Trump in a call on Wednesday. According to the Chinese foreign ministry, he emphasised that the US “must handle the issue of arms sales to Taiwan with prudence”.

Several people familiar with the situation said the package could be as big as $20bn. But others cautioned that the final number was in flux and might be closer to the December figure. Some US officials argue that China is bluffing and will not cancel the visit, according to two of the people.

The package will include four systems. In addition to Patriots, used to destroy incoming missiles, the US will allow Taiwan to buy more NASAMS, an advanced surface-to-air missile, and two other weapon systems.

Several people familiar with the matter said the administration had been planning to notify Congress about the package this month. But some experts believe Trump will postpone the move until he returns from China.

Under the Taiwan Relations Act, the US is obliged to sell weapons to Taiwan to provide for its own defence.

“As it has been for more than 40 years, the policy of the United States is to maintain Taiwan’s defensive capability relative to that of China,” a White House official said. “Credible deterrence has ensured peace and stability for many years — and will for many more. We do not comment on the specifics of pending sales.”

The arms sale package comes as frustrations are mounting in Washington about political wrangling in Taipei that is delaying the approval of a defence budget that would provide funds to buy weapons from the US.