bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Lawrence Chung

A possible delay in the planned summit between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping later this month has raised concerns about a pending record US arms sale to Taiwan, though officials in Taipei insist the deal remains on track.
Reuters reported on Friday that the US$14 billion arms package – possibly the largest ever for Taiwan – was ready for the US president’s approval and could be announced after his visit to Beijing.
The package is expected to include advanced air-defence systems such as Patriot PAC-3 missiles and the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System or Nasams, as well as an added US$6 billion in “asymmetric” capabilities.
However, uncertainty is growing after Trump said on Monday that he had asked Beijing to delay the summit – originally scheduled for March 31 to April 2 – by “a month or so” because of the US-Israel war on Iran.


Taiwan’s defence minister, Wellington Koo Li-hsiung, sought to reassure the public on Tuesday, saying Taipei had not received any indication of a sales delay.
“The defence ministry and the United States have maintained close coordination,” Koo told reporters ahead of a legislative session.
“Based on our understanding, the US internal review process is proceeding as scheduled. We have not received any information suggesting a delay.”
The Taiwanese defence chief’s comments come amid broader concerns that US military operations against Iran are rapidly depleting its ammunition stockpiles, possibly affecting Washington’s ability to sustain arms supplies to partners in the Indo-Pacific region.
Koo declined to comment on American force deployments but said Taipei would continue to closely monitor developments around the Taiwan Strait and mainland China through joint intelligence and surveillance efforts.
Despite the official reassurances, Ma Wen-chun, a legislator of the Kuomintang, Taiwan’s main opposition party, pointed to delays in some US weapons deliveries, warning that these could be further affected by the conflict in the Middle East.
“The MK-48 torpedo procurement project approved in 2018 has taken eight years with no deliveries so far,” she said, questioning whether the 66 F-16V fighter jets, procured under a NT$250 billion (US$7.8 billion) special budget, could be delivered by the end of this year.
Ma argued that while the defence ministry had stressed the urgency of passing arms procurement budgets in the legislature, it appeared less concerned when deliveries were delayed.

But ruling Democratic Progressive Party lawmaker Wang Ting-yu cited the importance of the reported new arms package. He said it was central to Taiwan’s planned “Taiwan Shield”, or T-Dome, air-defence network, and reflected long-term and stable US policy.
“These key items show that US policy towards Taiwan remains consistent and that Taiwan-US relations serve the interests of both sides,” Wang said.
He urged opposition parties to stop blocking defence-related budgets in the legislature, adding: “National defence should not be divided along party lines.”
Analysts said delays tied to high-level diplomacy were not uncommon, and that the timing of any announcement remained politically sensitive as Washington and Beijing sought to foster a more positive atmosphere ahead of their leader-level meetings.
Even if the summit was postponed, they said, US arms sales to Taiwan were still expected to proceed – though possibly after a Xi-Trump meeting.
“Such arms sales will ultimately go ahead, but the timing is likely to follow the delayed summit,” said Zivon Wang, a military analyst at the Chinese Council of Advanced Policy Studies, a Taipei-based think tank.
Wang said it was unlikely that Washington would announce a new package before then, as it would need to preserve negotiating space and signal goodwill to Beijing.
But Wang also cautioned that deliveries could face delays even if approved, as the US diverted its strategic resources to the Middle East.
“Washington has already shifted a significant amount of military capacity to support operations against Iran, which could affect the timeline for arms deliveries,” he said.


Wang added that the political impact of any announcement could be as important as its military significance, particularly in Taiwan’s continuing debate over a proposed NT$1.25 trillion special defence budget.
Huang Huei-hua, director of the Taiwan Global Talk think tank, said there was little chance Washington would scale back arms sales to Taipei.
“There is no reason for the US to push back arms sales to Taiwan, especially as it seeks to offset the costs of its involvement in conflicts such as Iran and Ukraine,” she said.
But Huang agreed that the timing of any announcement would be shaped by broader strategic priorities, with the Trump administration likely to focus first on developments in the Middle East.
“Recent reports suggest the United States has begun redeploying military assets from the Indo-Pacific to support operations there,” she noted.
According to media reports on Monday, Washington had begun moving more than 2,000 US Marines from Okinawa, Japan, to the Middle East aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli, while also repositioning missile defence systems previously stationed in South Korea.
Such moves could have wider implications for regional security, Huang said.
“Not only are US stockpiles being depleted, but the shifting of military resources from South Korea and Japan could create gaps in the Indo-Pacific,” she said, citing growing military pressure from mainland China.
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary.
Most countries, including the US and its defence allies South Korea and Japan, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state. But Washington is opposed to any attempt to take the self-governed island by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons.


Trump talks with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi off to positive start

Chaos over Donald Trump’s China trip likely to further test Beijing’s patience with US

Investors eye Xi-Trump summit for direction as Hong Kong, China stocks shaken by conflict

Why delayed US-China summit raises stakes for Takaichi ahead of White House visit

2026 Trump-Xi summit

Will delay in Trump-Xi summit affect US arms sales to Taiwan?

Taiwanese military personnel line up before the activation of a Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missile launcher during a drill in Taichung, Taiwan, in January 2025. Photo: EPA-EFE

Taiwanese soldiers take part in live-ammunition artillery training featuring M109 American self-propelled howitzers, in a coastal area of Taichung in August 2024. Photo: Anadolu via Getty Images

What lessons does Taiwan see from Iran and Ukraine for its air-defence strategy?

An instructor from the Ukrainian company General Cherry demonstrates the operation of an anti-air interceptor drone designed to destroy Russian attack drones, in Kyiv on Wednesday. Photo: AP

A Patriot missile system is deployed at a park in Taipei on July 11, 2025, during Taiwan’s annual Han Kuang military exercise. Photo: AFP

PLA ramps up Taiwan patrols after lull as Beijing slams Lai’s ‘independence confession’

Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te (right) says that with the island’s economic growth, it can “absolutely afford” a proposed US$39 billion special defence budget. Photo: Reuters

Why Japan’s Type-12 missile deployment may complicate China’s regional strategy

Japan’s upgraded Type-12 missile has a range of about 1,000km. Photo: AP

US Navy patrols Taiwan Strait before Xi-Trump summit, triggering PLA manoeuvres

A US Navy P-8A Poseidon transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace on Wednesday, the US Seventh Fleet said on Thursday. Photo: Handout

How Iran’s strikes on US bases could offer a preview for the Asia-Pacific

Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan is the biggest US airbase in East Asia. Analysts say American forces operating out of Japan could be vulnerable to attacks by the PLA in the event of a Taiwan conflict. Photo: Kyodo

Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the largest US military base in the Middle East, has been a target of Iran’s strikes on American military assets in the region. Photo: Planet Labs PBC/Handout via Reuters

News

China

Politics

Possible US$14 billion package said to be on track but broader concerns loom as US depletes ammunition stockpiles in war on Iran


Possible US$14 billion package said to be on track but broader concerns loom as US depletes ammunition stockpiles in war on Iran.


Will delay in Trump-Xi summit affect US arms sales to Taiwan?

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Possible US$14 billion package said to be on track but broader concerns loom as US depletes ammunition stockpiles in war on Iran

Possible US$14 billion package said to be on track but broader concerns loom as US depletes ammunition stockpiles in war on Iran