US Approves $11 Billion Arms Sale to Taiwan, Drawing China’s Ire
A HIMARS live-fire test launch by the Taiwanese military at the Jiupeng base in Pingtung, Taiwan, in May.
Photographer: -Hwa Cheng/AFP/Getty ImagesThe US has approved a package of arms sales to Taiwan worth up to $11 billion — one of its biggest ever — a move that drew criticism from Beijing.
The approvals announced late Wednesday by the State Department cover a broad range of equipment, including missiles, drones and artillery systems aimed at strengthening the democracy’s defenses. The package includes the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, valued at up to $4.05 billion and howitzer guns worth about $4 billion.