US announces possible arms deal with Taiwan

The US State Department has announced a potential $1.1 billion arms deal with Taiwan. It includes 60 anti-ship missiles and 100 anti-aircraft missiles. The deal still needs approval by the US Congress. Both Republicans and Democrats are expected to agree to the proposal.

China responded furiously, warning it not to take “countermeasures”. A spokesman for the Chinese embassy in the United States said the arms package “seriously jeopardizes relations between Washington and Beijing”. Earlier, China said it “strongly opposes the sale of US weapons to the Chinese territory of Taiwan.”

The Pentagon announced the package in the wake of Chinese military exercises around Taiwan after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was in Taipei last month. Pelosi is the highest-grossing American actress to visit the region in more than 25 years.

In China, the visit of an American politician is sensitive, because it is seen as a tacit recognition of Taiwan as a separate country. China views Taiwan as a renegade province that will be recovered sooner or later.