A new report is out that the Trump administration is about to sell over two billions worth of weapons to Taiwan, including tanks, anti-tank munitions and lots of missiles:
REUTERS – The United States is pursuing the sale of more than $2 billion worth of tanks and weapons to Taiwan, four people familiar with the negotiations said, sparking anger from Beijing which is already involved in an escalating trade war with Washington.
An informal notification of the proposed sale has been sent to the U.S. Congress, the four sources said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak about the possible deal.
The potential sale included 108 General Dynamics Corp M1A2 Abrams tanks worth around $2 billion as well as anti-tank and anti-aircraft munitions, three of the sources said. Taiwan has been interested in refreshing its existing U.S.-made battle tank inventory, which includes M60 Patton tanks.
The congressional notifications included a variety of anti-tank munitions, including 409 Raytheon Co and Lockheed Martin Corp-made Javelin missiles worth as much as $129 million, two of the sources said.
The notifications also included 1,240 TOW anti-tank missiles worth as much as $299 million, one of the sources said. There were also 250 stinger missiles worth as much as $223 million in the notification, the source said.
Stingers are often used in portable anti-aircraft weapons systems.
The US isn’t confirming the sale but Taiwan did confirm that it made the request and that it is proceeding normally.
China is very unhappy with the potential sale, however, warning the Trump administration not to go through with it:
The Chinese government condemned the planned sale.
“We are severely concerned about the U.S. move and are firmly against U.S. arms sales to Taiwan,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a daily news briefing in Beijing.
China urges the United States to stop arms sales to Taiwan and prudently deal with issues relating to Taiwan to prevent harm to bilateral relations and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, he added.
Tariffs aren’t the only way to get China’s attention.
But I doubt that Trump is using this as leverage with China. If anything he’s showing China that the US won’t back down over threats from the Communist government.
Remember, one of Trump’s first actions as president-elect was to take a phone call from Taiwan’s president Tsai Ying-wen, which China protested.