A Taiwan national flag flutters near the Taipei 101 building at the National Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall in Taipei, Taiwan, Feb. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying, File)2025-12-18T02:47:16Z 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 Trumps second term, largely over trade and tariffs but also over Chinas increasing aggressiveness toward Taiwan, which Beijing has said must reunify with the mainland.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. In separate but nearly identical statements, the State Department said the sales serve U.S. national, economic, and security interests by supporting the recipients continuing efforts to modernize its armed forces and to maintain a credible defensive capability. Stay up to date with the news and the best of AP by following our WhatsApp channel. Follow on 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. Chinas Foreign Ministry attacked the move, saying it would violate diplomatic agreements between China and the U.S.; gravely harm Chinas 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.Taiwans 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. Taiwans bolstering of its defense is the foundation for maintaining regional peace and stability, the ministry said. Taiwans Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung similarly thanked the U.S. for its long-term support for regional security and Taiwans self-defense capabilities, which he said are key for deterring a conflict in the Taiwan Strait, the body of water separating Taiwan from Chinas mainland.The arms sales comes as Taiwans government has pledged to raise defense spending to 3.3% of the islands 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 Taiwans 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. SIMINA MISTREANU Mistreanu is a Greater China reporter for The Associated Press, based in Taipei, Taiwan. She has reported on China since 2015. twitter mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site