US State Department approves $2.4 billion more in potential arms sales to Taiwan: Pentagon

WASHINGTON: The US State Department has approved the potential sale of 100 Boeingmade Harpoon Coastal Defense Systems to Taiwan in a deal that has a potential value of up to $2.37 billion, the Pentagon said on Monday. The move comes days after the State Department approved the potential sale of three other weapons systems to Taiwan, including sensors, missiles and artillery that could have a total value of $1.8 billion, prompting a sanctions threat from China. China will impose sanctions on Lockheed Martin, Boeing Defense, Raytheon and other US companies it says are involved in Washington’s arms sales to Taiwan, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said Monday. “We deplore Beijing’s efforts to retaliate against [the] US and foreign companies for their sales that support Taiwan’s legitimate selfdefense requirements,” US State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement. Monday’s formal notifications to Congress by the State Department covered the proposed sale of up to 100 Harpoon Coastal Defense Systems (HCDS), which includes 400 RGM84L4 Harpoon Block II Surface Launched Missiles to serve as coastal defense cruise missiles. Taiwan said the arms sales showed the island’s defense was of “great importance” to the US government. “Facing China’s military expansion and provocation, Taiwan will continue to enhance the modernization of defense capacity and speed up asymmetric warfare capabilities,” it said in a statement. The State Department sent notifications to Capitol Hill last week for the first tranche of arms sales including truckbased rocket launchers made by Lockheed, Standoff Land Attack Missile Expanded Response (SLAMER) missiles and related equipment made by Boeing Co, and external sensor pods for F16 jets.