The sale would mark the first time in four years that the United States has shipped arms to Taiwan, the longest gap in such arms sales in almost four decades.
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“We should handle arms transfers to Taiwan just as we would for any other close security partner”, said Representative Ed Royce, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. China considers democratic Taiwan to be a renegade province, to be bought under Beijing’s control, by force if necessary.Unigroup plans to take a stake of about 25 per cent in each of three chip test and packaging firms: ChipMOS Technologies Inc, Siliconware Precision Industries Co Ltd (SPIL) and Powertech Technology Inc.
US defense companies have sold more than $500 million in weapons to Taiwan since the last big government-brokered deal in 2011. “We remain committed to our one-China policy”, he added.
Reed Foster, a military capabilities expert from consultancy IHS Aerospace, Defense & Security, said that the US defense industry does little business with China so any action taken by Beijing was unlikely to have a big impact. Taiwan boosted its defense budget to $10.2 billion previous year from $9.1 billion in 2010, though China has nearly doubled its military spending to $216 billion over the same period.
Vice Foreign Minister Zheng Zeguang made “solemn representations” with Kaye Lee, the United States charge d’affaires, Wednesday regarding the sale, according to a statement on the foreign ministry’s website.
Before the deal’s announcement, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei complained Tuesday that such sales “interfere in China’s internal affairs and damage the peaceful development of ties across the Taiwan Strait and Sino-U.S. ties”.
“China’s government and companies will not carry out cooperation and commercial dealings with these types of companies”.
Professor Wang Yiwei, an American studies expert at Renmin University, said Beijing was now more capable of imposing sanctions on American companies.
The current weapons package had “little offensive power”, the US Naval Institute said on Wednesday, noting it did not include any support for Taiwan’s submarine program or next-generation fighter development.
U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said the decision was based exclusively on Taiwan’s defense needs.
The US and its allies have carried out high-profile overflights of the sea, nearing the artificial islands, in what they say are routine “freedom of navigation” exercises in global waters. “This is nothing new….”
“There’s no need for it to have any derogatory effect on our relationship with China”, he told reporters. He declined to elaborate.
In addition to refurbished two Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates, the approved sale also includes Amphibious Assault Vehicles, and Taiwan Advanced Tactical Data Link System integration.
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The State Department said the frigates were being offered at a price of $190 million as surplus items.
