The US has quietly released $870 million in funding for military aid to Taiwan after it was briefly paused during the Trump administration’s freeze on foreign aid.
Reuters first reported on February 21 that the US released the military aid for Taiwan as part of $5.3 billion in exemptions from the foreign aid pause. China, which strongly opposes US military support for Taiwan, reacted to the news on February 26.
“We are deeply concerned over relevant reports,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian. “China has all along opposed US military assistance to China’s Taiwan region, which has severely violated the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiqués, undermined China’s sovereignty and security interests, and sent a gravely wrong signal to ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces.”
Lin added that China urges the US to “stop arming Taiwan and undermining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”
The US has always sold weapons to Taiwan since Washington severed diplomatic relations with Taipei as part of a normalization agreement with Beijing in 1979, but it wasn’t until 2023 that the US began providing US-funded military aid, a step that marked a significant escalation. In 2024, President Biden signed off on more than $1 billion in military aid for Taiwan.
The US military support is done in the name of deterrence, but it has only escalated tensions in the region. During a press conference on February 27, Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian issued a strong warning against US involvement in Taiwan, which has been encouraged by the island’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
“The Taiwan question is an internal affair of China, which brooks no external interference. The US side wants to contain China with Taiwan and connives at risky and provocative activities of the DPP authorities for ‘Taiwan independence.’ This strategy will ultimately backfire,” Wu said.
“The DPP authorities have an illusion of ‘soliciting US support for independence’ and ‘resisting unification by force.’ It is a serious miscalculation of the situation, the public opinion, and the comparison of strength. Overreaching itself in such a way is extremely dangerous,” Wu added. ” We warn the DPP authorities that holding back the tide with a broom will only end up in self-destruction. We will come and get you, sooner or later.”
President Trump recently declined to say whether or not the US would defend Taiwan if China attacked the island, reverting the US back to a policy of “strategic ambiguity” on the issue, which was abandoned by President Biden. While Trump has a less bellicose tone toward China, the resumption of US military aid to Taiwan signals that the Trump administration will continue policies toward Taipei that Beijing views as very provocative.
The US should terminate all foreign aid.
Had no idea this was frozen to begin with.
Trump's true colors are laid bare in Africa, Palestine and China.
"The US has quietly released $870 million in funding for military aid to Taiwan", and the MIC breathed a great sigh of relief.
"Whew," said MIC, "That is a huge load off my mind. Now I'm ready for breakfast."
Don't people realize that a lot of stuff going on now in Washington is for show? Fire a lot of people then rehire them, or hire others you like better. Freeze foreign aid and then reinstate it for those the US favors especially like Israel. Work like gangbusters for "free speech" but then forbid any speech that favors Palestinians and is against Israel.
Say you are against the WEF adn globalism and then hire the big AI gurus from all over to install digital finance, surveillance apps on your phone, new vaccines for "new illnesses".
Say you ae for the little guy but then surround yourself with mostly billionaire oligarchs adn CEO's.
At least we have no more tampons in boys bathrooms, but then who is checking every boys school bathroom in the US?
Is pissing off just about everyone in the world part of the US global agenda?!…
Wasting taxpayer money on stupid things… No wonder the domestic problems are piling up…!
Nixon signed an agreement with China recognizing that Taiwan is a part of China. I disagreed with that strongly at the time. But regardless, how does the USgov continuously and openly violate agreements that it has solemnly signed? No wonder we aren't trusted around the world.
If you're talking about the 1972 Shanghai Communique, no, it doesn't "recognize" that Taiwan is a part of China. It "acknowledges" that that is the Chinese position.
Squaring away the conflict is pretty easy to describe – Communist China offering two systems acquisition. China not only had the recipe for success, but employed it for a time vis-a-vis Hong Kong.. if China offered an as two systems M&A melding of Taiwan (lock stock and barrel) with as is Communist China, all interests in a "one China" outcome would be satisfied. The problem is that President Xi has never offered and.may never offer such an M&A deal even though Tauwan is a highly desirable merger partner (rich, energetic, peaceful). Communist China unfortunately is counting on the Communist Party as its unifier even through Communism itself is decrepit and offers no off ramp to modernization. What Tauwan wants oriented- municipal government- is what Hong Kong wants (and firba time had) and what manu if not all Chinese metro areas want although not.necessarily the same in detail. The unleashing of local government from the Communist Party is almost certainly a future destiny for China, so what is suggested merely advances in time what will happen.