US administration approves drones deal with Taiwan
The United States administration has approved the sale of advanced drones to Taiwan, in yet another attempt to boost the self-ruled island against mainland China.
The US State Department cleared the potential sale of four MQ-9 SeaGuardian drones — worth 600 million dollars — to Taiwan in a formal notification sent to Congress, the Pentagon said on Tuesday.
The notification gives Congress 30 days to object to the deal.
“The proposed sale will help improve the security of the recipient and assist in maintaining political stability, military balance, and economic progress in the region,” the US State Department claimed.
The deal, if approved by Congress, would be the first such sale since US policy on the export of sophisticated drone technology was loosened by the administration of President Donald Trump.
The four US-made drones would come with ground stations, spares, and training.
China to give due response
China reacted to the development by saying that the United States was sending out wrong signals to the so-called military forces in Taiwan with the potential drone deal.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a regular news briefing on Wednesday that Beijing would give legitimate and necessary responses as circumstances further unfolded.
China has sovereignty over self-ruled Taiwan. Under the “One China” policy, almost all world countries — including the US — recognize that sovereignty.
But the US has been courting Taiwan in an attempt to unnerve Beijing. Washington almost regularly makes provocative moves around the self-governed island, particularly by sailing its warships through the sensitive and strategic Taiwan Strait, which separates Taiwan from mainland China.
Washington is also the island’s largest weapons supplier and an avid backer of Taiwan’s secessionist president Tsai Ing-wen.
The US has been approving a host of arms sales to Taiwan in recent weeks.
Tensions between the US and China remain at their highest point in decades, with sharp divisions over a host of political and economic issues, including Hong Kong and the coronavirus pandemic.
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