The Chinese Foreign Ministry warned Thursday that the sale of U.S. military equipment to Taiwan in a program normally reserved for sovereign countries violates the One China principle and agreements with Washington.
On Wednesday, the State Department notified the U.S. Congress of approval of the sale, saying the material “will be used to strengthen Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities.”
The package represents only $80 million (about €73 million) of the $2,000 million (€1,830 million) that Congress has earmarked for the program, but the implications of the so-called Foreign Military Funding (FMF) program are foreseeable. conflicts with China.
Chinese diplomacy immediately condemned the move, calling it a violation of US commitments under the One China policy and a series of subsequent agreements in which Washington pledged not to support Taiwan independence.
“This seriously violates the One China principle and the provisions of the three China-US agreements,” Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for the ministry, told reporters in Beijing on Thursday.
China and Taiwan have been living as two autonomous territories since 1949, when the former Chinese Nationalist government took refuge on the island after losing a civil war against the Communists.
Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory and threatens to reunite it by force if the island formally declares independence.
US officials were quick to clarify that providing Taiwan with FMF funding does not mean a change in policy towards the island.
Two U.S. officials told the Associated Press (AP) this Thursday that “for many years, the United States has been supplying military equipment through the ‘Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program to Taiwan’.”
“FMF simply allows eligible partner countries to purchase U.S. defense supplies, services, and training through FMS or, for a limited number of countries, through the Direct Commercial Contracting Foreign Military Financing (FMF/DCC) Program,” they stressed. responsible, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The State Department’s notice to Congress, obtained by the AP, did not specify which military hardware or systems would be paid for through the FMF, which uses US taxpayer money to pay for supplies to foreign countries.
But he says potential equipment and weapons include air and coastal defense systems, armored vehicles, infantry fighting vehicles, drones, ballistic missiles and cyber defenses, and advanced communications equipment, among others.
In addition to equipment, the FMF can also be used to support the training of the Taiwanese military.
The measure received strong bipartisan support from U.S. congressmen in the House and Senate, who stressed that China’s increasingly aggressive military action must be met with support for Taiwan’s defense as a U.S. response.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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