The US Department of State authorizes a sale of anti-tank systems to Taiwan

Dec. 29 (EUROPA PRESS) –

The United States Department of State has authorized on Thursday a sale to Taiwan of anti-tank systems worth 180 million dollars (around 169.3 million euros), amid the upturn in tensions with China.

“The Department of State authorizes a proposed sale of military equipment to the Office of Economic and Cultural Representative of Taiwan in the United States for the purchase of ‘Volcano’ anti-tank systems for an amount of 180 million dollars,” said the Office of Political and Military Affairs of the Department through his account on the social network Twitter.

In response, the Taiwanese Defense Ministry has shown its “sincere gratitude” for the decision, which is pending approval by the US Congress. “This sale is based on the Taiwan Relations Law and the Six Guarantees, which strengthen our defense capabilities and maintain regional peace,” he stressed.

Tensions have been on the rise in the area since August, after the visit to the island of the speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, which was the highest level in 25 years and sparked angry criticism from the Chinese government. .

The President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing Wen, announced on Tuesday the extension of the period of mandatory military service in the face of increasing tensions with China and specified that the decision will take effect on January 1, 2024 to improve the island’s combat capacity against possible attacks by Beijing. “China is threatening peace and stability and its threat to Taiwan is obvious,” she denounced.

The decision was criticized by Beijing, which said Wednesday that “the vast majority of Taiwanese compatriots” will not accept being “cannon fodder.” Also, the spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Wang Wenbin, said that “achieving complete reunification is the shared will of the Chinese people and a historical trend that no one can stop.”

Relations between China and Taiwan were suspended in 1949, after the forces of the Chinese nationalist Kuomintang party, led by Chiang Kai Shek, suffered a defeat in the civil war against the Communist Party of China and relocated to the island of Taiwan. The Asian giant considers Taiwan its rebel province, despite the fact that the island has declared its independence and has the support of the United States and the European Union.