US preps massive weapons package for Taiwan valued at over $10 billion

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration has announced a massive package of arms sales to Taiwan valued at more than $10 billion that includes medium-range missiles, howitzers and drones, drawing an angry response from China.

The State Department announced the sales late Wednesday during a nationally televised address by President Donald Trump, who made scant mention of foreign policy issues and did not speak about China or Taiwan at all. U.S.-Chinese tensions have ebbed and flowed during Trump’s second term, largely over trade and tariffs but also over China’s increasing aggressiveness toward Taiwan, which Beijing has said must reunify with the mainland.

If approved by Congress, it would be the largest-ever U.S. weapons package to Taiwan, exceeding the total amount of $8.4 billion in U.S. arms sales to Taiwan during the Biden administration.

The eight arms sales agreements announced Wednesday cover 82 high-mobility artillery rocket systems, or HIMARS, and 420 Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS — similar to what the U.S. had been providing Ukraine during the Biden administration to defend itself from Russia — worth more than $4 billion. They also include 60 self-propelled howitzer systems and related equipment worth more than $4 billion and 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 amount to $11.15 billion, according to Taiwan’s Defense Ministry.

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

“The proposed sale(s) will help improve the security of the recipient and assist in maintaining political stability, military balance, and economic progress in the region,” the statements said.

China’s Foreign Ministry attacked the move, saying it would violate diplomatic agreements between China and the U.S.; gravely harm China’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity; and undermine regional stability.

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

“This cannot save the doomed fate of ‘Taiwan independence’ but will only accelerate the push of the Taiwan Strait toward a dangerous situation of military confrontation and war. The U.S. support for ‘Taiwan Independence’ through arms will only end up backfiring. Using Taiwan to contain China will not succeed,” he added.

Under federal law, the U.S. is obligated to assist Taiwan with its self-defense, a point that has become increasingly contentious with China, which has vowed to take Taiwan by force, if necessary.

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry in a statement Thursday expressed gratitude to the U.S. over the arms sale, which it said would help Taiwan maintain “sufficient self-defense capabilities” and bring strong deterrent capabilities. Taiwan’s bolstering of its defense “is the foundation for maintaining regional peace and stability,” the ministry said.

Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung similarly thanked the U.S. for its “long-term support for regional security and Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities,” which he said are key for deterring a conflict in the Taiwan Strait, the body of water separating Taiwan from China’s mainland.

The arms sale comes as Taiwan’s government has pledged to raise defense spending to 3.3% of the island’s gross domestic product next year and to reach 5% by 2030. The boost came after Trump and the Pentagon requested that Taiwan spend as much as 10% of its GDP on its defense, a percentage well above what the U.S. or any of its major allies spend on defense. The demand has faced pushback from Taiwan’s opposition KMT party and some of its population.

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

The U.S. boost in military assistance to Taiwan was previewed in legislation adopted by Congress that Trump is expected to sign shortly.

Last week, the Chinese embassy in Washington denounced the legislation, known as the National Defense Authorization Act, saying it unfairly targeted China as an aggressor. The U.S. Senate passed the bill Wednesday.

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

华盛顿（美联社）——特朗普政府宣布了一项价值超过100亿美元的对台军售计划，其中包括中程导弹、榴弹炮和无人机，此举引发了中国的强烈不满。

美国国务院周三晚间在唐纳德·特朗普总统的全国电视讲话中宣布了这笔军售。特朗普在讲话中几乎没有提及外交政策问题，也完全没有谈到中国或台湾。在特朗普的第二个任期内，美中关系时而紧张时而缓和，主要源于贸易和关税问题，但也与中国对台湾日益强硬的态度有关。北京方面一直表示，台湾必须与大陆统一。

如果获得国会批准，这将是美国有史以来对台最大的武器采购计划，超过拜登政府时期美国对台军售总额84亿美元。

周三宣布的八项军售协议涵盖82套高机动性火箭炮系统（HIMARS）和420套陆军战术导弹系统（ATACMS），与拜登政府时期美国向乌克兰提供的用于防御俄罗斯的武器系统类似，总价值超过40亿美元。这些协议还包括60套自行榴弹炮系统及相关设备，价值超过40亿美元，以及价值超过10亿美元的无人机。

该交易包中的其他销售项目包括价值超过 10 亿美元的军用软件、价值超过 7 亿美元的标枪导弹和 TOW 导弹、价值 9600 万美元的直升机备件以及价值 9100 万美元的鱼叉导弹翻新套件。

据台湾国防部称，这八项销售协议总额达111.5亿美元。

美国国务院表示，这些军售“通过支持受援国不断努力实现军队现代化并保持可靠的防御能力，符合美国的国家、经济和安全利益”。

声明称：“拟议的军售将有助于提高受援国的安全，并有助于维护该地区的政治稳定、军事平衡和经济发展。”

中国外交部抨击了这一举动，称其将违反中美之间的外交协议；严重损害中国的主权、安全和领土完整；并破坏地区稳定。

外交部发言人郭家坤表示：“岛内‘台独’势力以武力谋求独立，以武力抵抗统一，挥霍人民的血汗钱购买武器，将台湾变成一个火药桶。”

“这无法挽救‘台独’注定失败的命运，只会加速台湾海峡走向军事对抗和战争的危险局面。美国以武力支持‘台独’最终只会适得其反。利用台湾遏制中国是行不通的。”他补充道。

根据联邦法律，美国有义务协助台湾进行自卫，这一点与中国之间的争议日益加剧，中国誓言如有必要将武力夺取台湾。

台湾国防部周四发表声明，对美国向台湾出售武器表示感谢。声明称，此次军售将有助于台湾维持“足够的自卫能力”，并增强其威慑力。国防部表示，台湾加强防卫“是维护地区和平稳定的基础”。

台湾外交部长林家龙也对美国“长期以来对地区安全和台湾自卫能力的支持”表示感谢，他表示，这对于阻止台湾海峡（将台湾与中国大陆隔开的水域）发生冲突至关重要。

此次军售正值台湾政府承诺明年将国防开支提高至占岛内生产总值（GDP）的3.3%，并在2030年达到5%之际。此前，特朗普和五角大楼要求台湾将国防开支提高至占GDP的10%，这一比例远高于美国及其任何主要盟国的国防开支水平。这一要求遭到了台湾反对党国民党和部分民众的反对。

台湾总统赖清德上个月宣布了一项400亿美元的特别预算，用于采购武器，其中包括建造名为“台湾巨蛋”的高级防空系统，该系统具备高空探测和拦截能力。这项预算将在2026年至2033年的八年内分期拨付。

美国加大对台军事援助的计划已在国会通过的法案中有所体现，预计特朗普将很快签署该法案。

上周，中国驻华盛顿大使馆谴责了这项名为《国防授权法案》的立法，称其不公平地将中国视为侵略者。美国参议院于周三通过了该法案。

米斯特雷亚努从北京报道。美联社视频记者张奥利维亚（北京）和赖约翰逊（台北）也对本报道做出了贡献。