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.