TAIPEI: Taiwan will seek an extension to the date by which an agreement must be signed with the United States for a batch of weapons deliveries given an ongoing standoff in parliament about defense spending, the island’s defense ministry said on Friday.
Taiwan President Lai Ching-te last year proposed a $40 billion special defense budget to counter a rising threat from China, which views the island as its own territory, but the opposition-controlled parliament has instead advanced its own, less expensive proposals which only fund some US weapons.
Taiwan’s defense ministry has urged the opposition to approve the spending proposal, warning that any delay could postpone much-needed weapons deliveries, as orders from other countries could move ahead in the queue.
The ministry said it had received from the US government draft Letters of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) price proposals valid until March 15 of this year for TOW anti-tank missiles, Lockheed Martin-made Javelin anti-armor missiles and M109A7 self-propelled howitzers.
The first instalment must be paid by March 31, but parliament has not sent the government’s defense spending proposal to committee for review, it added.
“The Ministry of National Defense will actively seek an extension from the US side for the LOA signing validity period to avoid the entire case being canceled due to a failure to sign within the deadline,” it said.
LOAs are the legal instrument the US government uses to sell weapons abroad.
The ministry said that it has already coordinated with the US on what weapons it wants under the spending plans and confirming key factors such as willingness to sell, production lines, and delivery timelines.
Parliament should complete its review as soon as possible so that the armed forces can “build up capabilities and prepare for combat, deter aggression, and safeguard national security,” it added.
Taiwan’s main opposition party the Kuomintang (KMT), which sent a delegation to Beijing this week, says it supports defense spending but has a duty to scrutinize the plans and will not sign “blank cheques.”
The US says that it supports Taiwan’s efforts to boost spending, something the Trump administration has been asking of all US allies.
“As the State Department and AIT have repeatedly stated publicly, and we’ve made clear to Taiwan counterparts, we welcome Taiwan’s announcement of a $40 billion special defense procurement budget,” a State Department spokesperson said in a statement.
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) is the de facto embassy in the absence of formal diplomatic ties.
Taiwan to seek extension of arms deals with US amid budget stand-off
https://arab.news/8ra8n
Taiwan to seek extension of arms deals with US amid budget stand-off
- Taiwan parliament stalls government’s $40 billion defense plan
- Taiwan’s main opposition party says won’t sign ‘blank cheques’
Homeless Muslims in southern Philippines observe Ramadan as month of trial
- Thousands lost their homes when parts of Bongao in Tawi-Tawi were burnt to ashes
- Many trying to fully observe the fasting month say they are grateful to be alive
Manila: As Annalexis Abdulla Dabbang was looking forward to observing the month of Ramadan with her family, just days before it began they lost everything when an enormous fire tore through whole neighborhoods of their city in the southernmost province of the Philippines.
Bongao is the capital of Tawi-Tawi, an island province, forming part of the country’s Muslim minority heartland in the Bangsamoro region. The city experienced its worst fire in years in early February, when flames swept through the coastal community, leaving more than 5,000 people homeless.
“We were swimming for our lives. We had to swim to escape from the fire ... We swam in darkness, and (even) the sea was already hot because of the fire,” Dabbang, a 27-year-old teacher, told Arab News.
“Everything we owned was gone in just a few hours — our home, our memories, the things we worked hard for, everything turned to ashes.”
Trying to save their 2-year-old daughter and themselves, she and her husband left everything behind — as did hundreds of other families that together with them have since taken shelter at the Mindanao State University gymnasium — one of the evacuation centers.
Unable to secure a tent, Dabbang’s family has been sleeping on the bleachers, sharing a single mat as their bed. When Ramadan arrived a few days after they moved to the makeshift shelter, they welcomed it in a different, more solemn way. There is no family privacy for suhoor, no room or means to welcome guests for iftar.
“Ramadan feels different now. It’s painful but at the same time more real. When we lost our home, we began to understand what sacrifice really means. When you sleep in an evacuation center, you understand hunger, discomfort in a deeper way,” Dabbang said.
“We don’t prepare special dishes. We prepare our hearts.”
While she and thousands of others have lost everything they have ever owned, she has not lost her faith.
“Our dreams may have turned to ashes, but our prayers are still alive,” she said.
“This Ramadan my prayers are more emotional than ever. I pray for strength, not just for myself, but for my family and for every neighbor who also lost their family home. I pray for healing from the trauma of fire. I pray that Allah will replace what we lost with something better. I pray for the chance to rebuild not just our house, but our sense of security.”
Juraij Dayan Hussin, a volunteer helping the Bongao fire victims, observed that many of them were traumatized and the need to cleanse the heart and mind during Ramadan was what kept many of them going, because they are “thankful that even though they lost their property, they are still alive.”
But the religious observance related to the fasting month is not easy in a cramped shelter.
“It’s hard for Muslims to perform their prayers when they do not have their proper attire because they usually have specific clothes for prayer,” he said. “Sanitation in the area is also an issue ... when you fast and when you pray, cleanliness is essential.”
For Abdulkail Jani, who is staying at a basketball court with his brother and more than 70 other families, this Ramadan will be spent apart from their parents, whom they managed to move to relatives.
“The month of Ramadan this year is a month of trial ... there will be a huge change from how we observed Ramadan in the past, but we will adjust to it and try to comfort ourselves and our family. The most important thing is that we can perform the fasting,” he told Arab News.
“Despite our situation now, despite everything, as long as we’re alive, we will observe Ramadan. We’ll try to observe it well, without missing anything.”
