US announces massive package of arms sales to Taiwan valued at more than $10 billion

WASHINGTON– The Trump administration announced a massive package of arms sales to Taiwan, valued at more than $10 billion, including medium-range missiles, howitzers and drones, sparking an angry response from China.

The State Department announced the sales Wednesday evening during a nationally televised address by President Donald Trump, who barely discussed foreign policy issues and did not talk at all about China or Taiwan. Tensions between the United States and China have ebbed and flowed during Trump’s second term, largely over trade and tariffs, but also over China’s growing aggressiveness toward Taiwan, which Beijing insists must be reunified with the mainland.

If approved by Congress, it would be the largest-ever U.S. arms program in Taiwan, surpassing the total $8.4 billion in U.S. arms sales to Taiwan under the Biden administration.

The eight arms deals announced Wednesday cover 82 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, or HIMARS, and 420 Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS — similar to what the United States provided to Ukraine under the Biden administration to defend against Russia — worth more than $4 billion. They also include 60 self-propelled howitzer systems and associated equipment worth more than $4 billion, as well as drones valued at more than $1 billion.

Other sales in the package include military software valued at more than $1 billion, Javelin and TOW missiles worth more than $700 million, helicopter spare parts worth $96 million, and refurbishment kits for Harpoon missiles worth $91 million.

The eight sales agreements are worth $11.15 billion, according to Taiwan’s Defense Ministry.

The State Department said the sales serve “the national, economic, and security interests of the United States by supporting the recipient’s ongoing efforts to modernize its armed forces and maintain a credible defensive capability.”

“The proposed sale(s) will contribute to improving the security of the beneficiary and maintaining political stability, military balance and economic progress in the region,” the statements said.

China’s Foreign Ministry criticized the move, saying it would violate diplomatic agreements between China and the United States; seriously undermine China’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity; and undermine regional stability.

“The ‘Taiwan independence’ forces on the island seek independence by force and resist reunification by force, squandering the people’s hard-earned money to buy weapons at the cost of turning Taiwan into a powder keg,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said.

“This cannot save the doomed fate of Taiwan’s independence, but will only accelerate the push across the Taiwan Strait into a dangerous situation of military confrontation and war. US support for Taiwan’s independence by arms will only backfire. Using Taiwan to contain China will not succeed,” he added.

Under federal law, the United States is required to assist Taiwan in its self-defense, a point that is increasingly controversial with China, which has vowed to take Taiwan by force if necessary.

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry on Thursday expressed gratitude to the United States for the arms sale, which it said would help Taiwan maintain “sufficient self-defense capabilities” and bring strong deterrence capabilities. Strengthening Taiwan’s defense “is the foundation for maintaining regional peace and stability,” the ministry said.

Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung also thanked the United States for its “long-term support for Taiwan’s regional security and self-defense capabilities,” which he said are key to deterring conflict in the Taiwan Strait, the body of water separating Taiwan from the Chinese mainland.

The arms sale comes as Taiwan’s government pledged to increase its defense spending to 3.3% of the island’s gross domestic product next year and 5% by 2030. The increase came after Trump and the Pentagon demanded that Taiwan spend up to 10% of its GDP on defense, a much higher percentage than the United States or any of its main allies spend on defense. This request was rejected by the opposition KMT party and part of the Taiwanese population.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te last month announced a special budget of $40 billion for arms purchases, including the construction of an air defense system with high-level detection and interception capabilities called Taiwan Dome. The budget will be spread over eight years, from 2026 to 2033.

The increase in U.S. military aid to Taiwan was included in legislation passed by Congress that Trump is expected to sign shortly.

Last week, the Chinese Embassy in Washington denounced the law, known as the National Defense Authorization Act, saying it unfairly targeted China as an aggressor. The US Senate passed the bill on Wednesday.

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Mistreanu reported from Beijing. AP video journalists Olivia Zhang in Beijing and Johnson Lai in Taipei, Taiwan, contributed to this report.