Bloomberg: US plans to supply Taiwan with $500 million worth of weaponsThe US is preparing a package of military assistance for Taiwan, which the US administration intends to transfer under an accelerated procedure.
This was announced on Friday, May 5, by Bloomberg sources.
The package will include sending existing stocks of American weapons or auxiliary equipment to Taiwan.
It is noted that this will be achieved through the use of accelerated financing powers, which the United States used to accelerate the supply of weapons to Ukraine.
Thus, the United States will not need to go through a long process of concluding contracts and producing weapons. And now the country's congress has authorized American President Joe Biden to direct up to $1 billion from the reserves of the States to "support island democracy."
On April 28, the US Navy announced the launch of tests of five underwater drones that can "radically change the situation" in the Taiwan Strait. It was noted that the new drones have the potential of hidden installation of mines. The American authorities also intend to equip them with rocket launchers.
On April 18, Bloomberg reported that Taiwan intends to purchase 400 Harpoon tactical anti-ship missiles from the United States to repel a potential Chinese invasion. The deliveries will be carried out as part of the decision on the sale of weapons adopted by the US Congress in 2020.
On April 6, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that China would not make concessions on the Taiwan issue. According to him, "anyone who expects China to make concessions on the Taiwan issue is indulging in unrealistic dreams."
The escalation of the conflict between China and Taiwan occurred after the visit of the Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi to the island in August 2022. The Chinese side considers Taiwan to be its territory, therefore it considers visiting the island by officials of other countries as support for Taiwan's independence.
The island of Taiwan has been governed by an independent administration since 1949, when the Kuomintang forces led by General Chiang Kai-shek, who lost the civil war with the Communist Party of China, moved to Taiwan. Contacts between the island and mainland China later resumed.