Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON, Dec 31 (Reuters) – Lockheed Martin Corp has been awarded a contract involving arms sales to Taiwan to meet what Washington calls Taiwan’s air force’s “urgent operational needs”, the Pentagon said on Wednesday.
The Pentagon said in a statement that the contract has a maximum value of $328.5 million and is subject to foreign military sales financing of $157.3 million at the time of award.
why it’s important
Washington has formal diplomatic ties with China but maintains unofficial ties with Taiwan and is Taiwan’s most important arms supplier. The United States is legally obligated to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself, although such arms sales are a continuing source of friction with China.
Taiwan remained on high alert on Wednesday and kept its maritime emergency response center operating while monitoring Chinese naval exercises, the coast guard said, after China conducted large-scale military drills around the island the day before.
Key Quotes
“This contract provides for the procurement and delivery of 55 Infrared Search and Track Corps enhanced sensor pods, processors, pod containers and processor containers to meet the urgent operational needs of the Taiwan Air Force,” the Pentagon said.
It added that contract work will be performed in Orlando, Florida, and is expected to be completed by June 2031.
context
In mid-December, President Donald Trump’s administration announced an $11.1 billion arms sale to Taiwan, the largest ever U.S. arms package for Taiwan, which faces increasing military pressure from China.
China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and has not ruled out using force to bring it under Chinese control. Taiwan denies China’s claims and denounced the latest drills as a threat to regional security and a blatant provocation.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Chris Reese and Alistair Bell)