(Taipei) Taiwan thanked the United States on Thursday for approving the sale of F-16 fighter jet equipment and parts, saying the military support would help the island face the Chinese threat.
The sale will allow Taiwan to “meet the needs of defense operations,” Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also welcomed this sale on the social network to the escalation of China’s aggression.”
The US Defense Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced on Wednesday these two contracts, which mainly concern F-16 spare parts, for a total amount of 300 million US dollars in total (nearly 411 million THAT).
The agency, part of the United States Department of Defense, is responsible for providing financial assistance to United States allies and military partners.
If Washington has recognized Beijing to the detriment of Taipei as a legitimate power since 1979, the United States remains the island’s most powerful ally and its main arms supplier.
In May, China organized large-scale military maneuvers around Taiwan, three days after Lai Ching-te’s inauguration speech perceived by China as an “admission of independence” of the island.
China considers Taiwan to be one of its provinces, which it has not yet succeeded in reunifying with its territory since the end of the civil war and the coming to power of the communists in 1949.