Taiwan-US Relations

Senators Press Trump on Taiwan Arms Sales Delays

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By TaiwanPlus

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A group of four Republican senators has urged the Trump administration to uphold US defense commitments to Taiwan, citing concerns over delays in military support. In a letter sent Wednesday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the lawmakers pointed to the freezing of a US$14 billion arms package and delays in other military support. They also criticized US President Donald Trump for previously describing Taiwan as a bargaining chip in dealings with China. On a separate occasion, Rubio said any weapons sales, including to Taiwan, must be balanced against the needs of US military commitments worldwide.

US Arms Sales

REPORTER:  
US lawmakers are pressing the Trump administration to honor its defense commitments to Taiwan.

A group of Republican senators sent a letter to US secretary of state Marco Rubio and US Defense secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday. It raised concerns about delays in US support for Taiwan, including a 14-billion US dollar arms sales package postponed by the Trump administration. Trump has previously referred to US arms sales to Taiwan as a bargaining chip in dealings with China. Rubio recently addressed the issue, saying the needs of the US military come first.

Marco Rubio (US SECRETARY OF STATE):  
I want you to focus globally for a moment. If we sell you something, we don’t have it anymore. We may be able to make it in the future, but we don’t have it right now. So any arms sale we do with anyone on the planet, including Taiwan, has to be balanced with where our combatants and commanders around the world are telling us about their minimum needs in case of a conflict in their region.

REPORTER:  
This comes as Chinese president Xi Jinping arrives in Washington, DC for a three-day summit with US President Trump.