US backs US$2.4 billion Harpoon missile sale to Taiwan amid soaring tensions with China
- Proposed deal to include as many as 100 Harpoon Coastal Defence Systems built by Boeing
- Move comes after Beijing said it would impose sanctions on Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon Technologies over another approved arms sale
The US State Department signalled its approval for a potential US$2.4 billion sale of land-based anti-ship missiles to Taiwan, a move certain to anger Beijing and raise tensions further between the United States and China.
The Trump administration said in a statement Monday that it has notified Congress that it backs the proposed sale of as many as 100 Harpoon Coastal Defence Systems built by Boeing, which includes 400 land-based missiles.
The new Harpoons are intended to be launched from ground-mobile launchers, adding to Taiwan’s arsenal of air and submarine-launched Harpoons from earlier sales.
“The United States maintains an abiding interest in peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and considers the security of Taiwan central to the security and stability of the broader Indo-Pacific region,” the State Department said in a statement.
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Washington’s US$1.8 billion arms sale to Taiwan is first weapons deal of its kind in over 40 years
The move comes as already-high tensions between the US and China soar even higher.
China said earlier that it would impose unspecified sanctions on Boeing’s defence unit, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon Technologies after the US State Department approved US$1.8 billion in arms sales to Taiwan last week and made a previous announcement of 66 new F-16 fighters.
