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World
U.S. arms sales to Taiwan have been suspended to ensure the military has enough ammunition for operations in Iran, the acting Navy secretary said Thursday.
The acting U.S. Navy secretary said Thursday that arms sales for Taiwan have been “suspended” so the U.S. military can secure enough ammunition for its operations in Iran.
Hong Kao told a congressional hearing that the stalled $14 billion weapons purchase by Taiwan was put on hold “to make sure that we have the munitions that we need for Operation +Epic Fury+ (epic rage), of which we have a lot.” He added: “But we just want to make sure that we have everything, and then arms sales will resume when the administration sees it necessary.”
Trump has not committed to completing the sale, raising concerns about his support for Taiwan, which China considers part of its territory and has vowed to annex, by force if necessary.
Before his latest official visit to China, Trump said he would speak with President Xi Jinping about the arms deal, a departure from Washington’s previous insistence that it would not consult Beijing on the matter.
He later said he had made no commitments to Xi on Taiwan and would decide on the arms sales within a short period of time.
