Taipei .- Taiwan signed six arms procurement agreements with the United States worth over 208.77 billion New Taiwan dollars (about 6.627 billion US dollars), amid Taipei’s efforts to improve its defense capabilities against increasing military pressure from China.
The contracts were signed at the beginning of this month by Taiwan’s defense mission in the U.S. and by the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT, Washington’s de facto embassy on the island), according to a report this Wednesday by the CNA news agency.
The operation takes place a few weeks before the possible trip of the US President, Donald Trump, to China, where it is expected that in his meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, Taiwan will be one of the central issues, since for Beijing it is the main “red line” in its relations with Washington.
Among the agreements are 123.500 million Taiwanese dollars ($3.919 million) for the purchase of HIMARS multiple rocket launcher systems and another 73.890 million ($2.344 million) for M109A7 Paladin self-propelled howitzers.
The remaining contracts cover the replenishment of the Army’s missile reserves, the acquisition of anti-armor missiles, the joint production of large-caliber ammunition between Taiwan and the United States, and the contracting of “consulting services” related to the development of an integrated air defense system.
Funding
The acquisitions were finalized after the island’s Army announced that the U.S. had agreed to allow deferred payments by Taipei for the purchase of 82 HIMARS systems and 60 M109A7 systems.
These systems are part of a larger weapons package, valued at $11.1 billion and notified to the U.S. Congress last December, the largest approved to date for the island.
The Taiwanese Government, led by the Democratic Progressive Party, aims to finance these acquisitions and future arms purchases through a special defense budget of 1.25 trillion Taiwanese dollars (39.7 billion dollars), which has the support of the US Administration.
However, the two main opposition forces, the Kuomintang and the Taiwan People’s Party, have taken advantage of their parliamentary majority to block this initiative and instead propose smaller-scale and scope allocations, considering that the Executive’s plan lacks sufficient detail on the destination of said resources.
The lack of agreement around these proposals comes amid a resurgence of military pressure from China, which considers the island of Taiwan an “inalienable part” of its territory and has not ruled out the use of force to gain control of it.
