Trump now undecided on new arms sales to Taiwan

TAIPEI, May 16: Taiwan's government pressed the case on Saturday for US arms supplies, saying they are based on US law and serve as a shared deterrent to regional threats, after President Donald Trump said he had not decided on future sales.

Despite a lack of formal diplomatic ties, the US is the most important international backer for democratically governed Taiwan, which China claims as its territory. Washington is bound by the Taiwan Relations Act to provide weapons to the island.

But on Friday after a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, Trump said he had not decided whether to proceed with a major weapons sale, adding to uncertainty about US support for Taiwan.

In a statement, Taiwan President Lai Ching-te's spokesperson Karen Kuo said China's escalating military threat is the "sole destabilising factor" in the Indo-Pacific region, including the Taiwan Strait.

"Furthermore, military sales ?between Taiwan and the US are not only a reflection of the US security commitment to Taiwan as stipulated in the Taiwan Relations Act, but also serve as a mutual deterrence against regional threats," she said.

Taiwan thanks Trump for his long-standing and continued support for security in the Taiwan Strait, and Taipei continues to deepen cooperation with Washington, Kuo added.

In December, the Trump administration approved a record $11 billion arms sale package for Taiwan. Reuters has reported a second one, worth around $14 billion, still awaits Trump's approval.

Speaking to reporters in Taipei earlier on Saturday, Taiwan Deputy Foreign Minister Chen Ming-chi declined to comment on the second package because it has yet to be made public, saying Taiwan would continue to communicate with the US to understand the situation from Washington's side.

Taiwan's government has been stymied by the opposition-controlled parliament in trying to pass $40 billion in extra defence spending. Earlier this month it approved two-thirds of what the government wanted but specified it was for US arms.    �"REUTERS