| 1556mm M109A6 medium self-propelled howitzer. © Reuters=News1 |
The Taiwanese government expressed gratitude for the US$750 million US arms sale to Taiwan by the Joe Biden administration.
According to local media such as the Taiwan Hao Shimbun on the 5th, President Chang Du-han, spokesman for the President of the Republic of Korea, said that the Korean government expressed gratitude for the US government’s fulfillment of the Taiwan Relations Act and the promise of Section 6 guarantee.
The US sells defensive weapons to Taiwan in accordance with the Taiwan Relations Act enacted as a domestic law in 1979. The clause 6 guarantee does not support China’s claims of sovereignty over Taiwan, it will not amend Taiwanese laws, and it will not stop selling arms as long as China exerts pressure on Taiwan.
“This is the first sale of arms to Taiwan since President Biden took office,” Chang said.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense also emphasized that the United States supports Taiwan’s provision of defense weapons based on the Taiwan Relations Act and the Paragraph 6 guarantee, which is the basis of regional security.
Reuters reported that the U.S. State Department approved the sale of 40 155mm M109A6 medium-sized self-propelled howitzers to Taiwan on the same day for $750 million (about 858 billion won). The package includes 1698 advanced precision guidance kits for artillery, logistics, reserve, training, ground base and previous generations of artillery.
In this regard, Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post (SCMP) said that the arms sales are not particularly large, but they are sure to receive fierce criticism from China.
Earlier in April, when the Taiwanese media first announced plans to sell self-propelled artillery, the English version of the Global Times, a Chinese state-run media, criticized the expert’s comments for fueling the very tense US-China relations and cross-strait relations.
In a speech commemorating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, President Xi Jinping said that Taiwan and reunification are a ‘historical mission’ and that Taiwan is a part of Chinese territory and that the use of force will not be excluded.
jrkim@news1.kr
