A group of US weapons makers attended the Taiwan-US Defense Industry Forum in Taipei on Wednesday and pledged to increase cooperation with Taiwan.
The event marks the first time since 2019 that the US arms industry sent a delegation to Taiwan and comes at a time of soaring tensions between the US and China over the island.
The forum was attended by 30 defense contractors, including Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, and a former senior US Marines Corps officer, retired Lt. Gen. Steven Rudder.
“We want to be part of the self-defense capabilities of Taiwan,” Rudder said in a speech at the event. He called for closer cooperation between the US and Taiwanese militaries, saying the “endgame” is “joint interoperability.”
The US and Taiwan have taken significant steps recently to increase military ties, including the deployment of 200 US troops to Taiwan for training. The deployment marks the largest-known US military presence on the island since Washington severed diplomatic relations with Taipei in 1979.
Taiwan is also looking to begin joint production of arms with American companies. Taiwanese contractors attended the forum and said they could work with the US on fighter jets and drones.
“When it comes to the development of the next-generation fighter, we look forward to the support from the US to build the jet ourselves,” said Hu Kai-hung, chairman of Taiwan’s Aerospace Industrial Development Corp.
The steps the US and Taiwan have taken to increase military and diplomatic ties anger China, which has put Taiwan under more military pressure in response. Ahead of the forum, Beijing issued a strong warning against such cooperation.
“These ‘military-industrial complexes’ of the United States have always been keen to sell arms around the world, export wars and seek windfall profits,” said Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Tan Kefei. “The Democratic Progressive Party authorities’ practice of bringing wolves into the home is repugnant and will only bring a deep disaster to Taiwanese compatriots.”
Taiwanese patriots: you have an obvious and direct object lesson in Ukraine … do you really want to be in that condition in a few years?
I read that there is growing anti- war sentiment in Taiwan, but didn’t save links.
Next election is going to be key … a war or peace moment.
in other words; whoever pretends to be a proponent for peace the loudest will be the POTUS
In the last election, the leader’s party was roundly defeated. She had to step down as head in shame. People don’t want to be obliterated, they want to exist with the autonomy they enjoy, but also not be engaged in war goaded on by the US.
These pigs are always looking for new trough to fill their bellies with.
Large fortunes are evidence of grotesque criminality, excepting golf and movie stars,
Some of those get involved too.
https://thegrayzone.com/2023/05/02/ukrainian-banker-cash-drone-terror-russia/
I’m continuously surprised there are so many creeps like Hamill who remain under the spell of propaganda or are so financially stressed they lower themselves to be the same as the right wing president of south Korea.
Sean Penn too.
Biden has unilaterally changed US recognition of Taiwan’s status. And Trump is more dangerous than Biden?
US “recognition of Taiwan’s status” remains the same as it has for 40 years.
The US position since 1979 has been that it acknowledges that the PRC claims jurisdiction over Taiwan, isn’t going to say whether it recognizes that jurisdiction or not, and is going to continue to trade as it pleases with Taiwan (including in arms).
As far as “strategic ambiguity” is concerned, it’s hard to get more ambiguous than one part of the executive branch saying the US would fight for Taiwan and another part saying it wouldn’t, while the legislative branch argues incessantly over the matter.
Not so much a “changed in recognition of Taiwan’s status” as it is a violation of the spirit of the “One China Policy”, that states “both sides of the Taiwan Strait should mutually and peacefully agree to a resolution of this as yet unsettled issue.” This appeared to be doing ok, as there are around 400,000 Taiwanese living on the mainland, and about 4,000 Taiwan invested companies there. This Administration is interfering with this recommended peaceful resolution by its current rabble rousing, saber rattling activity when there had been no imminent threat of China invading. You’d almost think that we are trying to instigate an invasion, eh ? 😉
Taiwan is where the new expanding market is.
Ignore the product and you’ll be amazed how much this sales push is just like any other push into a new market.
One of my many worthless college classes was an international marketing class, taught by a gal who used to make marketing studies for American companies who would pay her to go to the countries. She would then make a report on the country and how to enter that market. You don’t do the ugly American and do it our way after all, but you need to understand customs, religions, demographics, etc.
In our class we designed these studies and this talk of a new market for the arms industry is just like it is for widgets or anything else.
tick, tock, tic, tock…
It’s funny that the stuff being sold to them has been proven to be a
bunch of effete boutique glitz designed to look good on brochures.
Here we have a Marine general (not Smedley Butler) prattling about joint military interoperability with a renegade China off-shore island, which is illegal.
NATO defines “interoperability” as “the ability for Allies to act together coherently, effectively and efficiently to achieve tactical, operational and strategic objectives” . . .as in US military failures in Afghanistan, Ukraine. . .the list is long, and China is smarter than relying on always-failing military strategies.
Meanwhile the US is illegally assisting China off-shore island Taiwan with military resources to reinforce the independence Taiwan is claiming, while the two-faced US wrongly claims that recognition of Taiwan’s status has not changed. So we fall back on the old truth, if the government says something believe the opposite.
Taiwan’s status has not changed. It has been independent of any mainland Chinese regime since 1895. The only thing the US has “recognized” since 1979 is that the regime currently ruling China pretends otherwise.
Taiwan’s status has changed and is now getting stepped-up US support even though the US claims its policy is that Taiwan shouldn’t be independent while it illegally supports Taiwan in its independence.
Taiwan’s “President” Tsai Ing-wen, January 18, 2020, in a BBC interview:
Q: Will there come a day when that reality needs to be spelled out by calling Taiwan a country, and a formal declaration of independence to do that?
A: Well, the idea is that we don’t have a need to declare ourselves an independent state. We are an independent country already and we call ourselves the Republic of China (Taiwan), and we have our own system of running the country, and we do have a government and we have a military, and we have elections, like the presidential elections that you have witnessed. . .here
China has made it clear that anyone who supports the US-Taiwan policy for Taiwan independence is promoting a war, here covering it up with the bogus claim that “Taiwan’s status has not changed.”
Since 1979, public US policy has been to “acknowledge” the PRC’s claim that Taiwan isn’t independent, without stating any such position itself.
Since 1979, the public US policy has been that it will trade with Taiwan, including in arms, as it damn well pleases despite that PRC claim.
And of course, Tsai is correct, even though saying the quiet part out loud comes with some dangers: Taiwan is an independent state which has never been part of, subject to, or ruled by the PRC.
Recognizing an indisputable fact of reality isn’t “promoting a war.” Whining about people recognizing an indisputable fact of reality is seeking an excuse for a war.
1. US policy is “we do not support Taiwan independence” . .but it is supporting Taiwan independence. . .liars
2. US is not just “trading with arms” it is “We want to be part of the self-defense capabilities of Taiwan.”
3. The fact that Taiwan is an independent state not recognized by the US, but militarily supported by the US, is a stated cause for war according to the sovereign state of China.
4. Anyone supporting the lying US and not recognizing China sovereignty over one of its off-shore islands is a warmonger, of which the US has many.
5. Any claim by the US that the true political status of this small far-away island has any bearing on US national security is ridiculous, except as a contribution to endless warfare.
The US should stay out of Taiwan’s business.
As should all other foreign regimes.
Including the PRC.
No, China is a recognized sovereign state with an off-shore island that calls itself China while the real China has claimed this island, just as the US has claimed sovereignty of various islands around the world, and it’s nobody’s business but China’s despite all the lies and war-mongering by Washington.
Fact, reality, and history say you’re incorrect.
The US troops which were sent to Taiwan for training US Chinese pawns were National Guard because the US Army has not been able to fulfill all its US bogus “national security” problems, with military bases around the world focusing on instability. Young US people are getting smarter, driving recruitment numbers down.
The only reason why the US government is meddling in Taiwan is to use Taiwan as a bulwark against China. The US government can only be trusted to lie, and undermine period. Hopefully the current Taiwanese regime is voted out and booted the the curb. Siding with Uncle Sam always ends badly for the people.