WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. State Department has approved the sale of parts for F-16 jets and radars to Taiwan for an estimated $385 million, the Pentagon said on Friday, a day before Taiwan President Lai Ching-te launched the offensive. Pacific cruise.
The United States is bound by law to give China-claimed Taiwan a way to defend itself despite the lack of diplomatic relations between Washington and Taipei, to Beijing’s anger.
Democratic-ruled Taiwan rejects China’s claims of independence.
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China has been increasing military pressure against Taiwan, including a series of military exercises this year, and sources told Reuters that Beijing could hold more to coincide with Lai’s tour of the Pacific, which includes stops in Hawaii and Guam, a US territory. .
The Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said the sale included $320 million in spare parts and support for F-16 fighters and Active Electronically Scanned Array Radars and related equipment.
The State Department also approved the potential sale to Taiwan of a modified mobile phone application and support for an estimated $65 million, the Pentagon said. The prime contractor for the $65 million sale is General Dynamics.
Taiwan’s defense ministry said it expects sales to “start” within a month and that the equipment will help maintain the readiness of the F-16 fleet and “build a reliable defense force”.
“Taiwan and the United States will continue to strengthen their security relationship and work together to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region,” he said in a statement.
Last month, the United States announced a $2 billion arms deal to Taiwan, including the first delivery to the island of an advanced missile defense system tested in Ukraine.
Lai leaves for Hawaii on Saturday on an official stopover on his way to the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau, three of the 12 countries that still have diplomatic relations with Taipei. He will also stop in Guam.
Hawaii and Guam are home to major US military bases.
China on Friday urged the United States to exercise “prudence” in its relations with Taiwan.
The State Department said it had no grounds for what it called a secret, routine and unofficial move by Lai to be used as a pretext for provocation.
(Reporting by Ismail Shakil; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in Taipei; Editing by Caitlin Webber, William Mallard and Kim Coghill)