Joe Biden to ask Congress to fund Taiwan arms via Ukraine Budget

U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to ask Congress for arms funding for Taiwan as part of a supplemental budget request for Ukraine to accelerate arms supplies to the country amid a growing threat from China.

Here you have the details about the news.

Joe Biden to ask Congress to fund Taiwan arms via Ukraine Budget

According to reports, the Office of Management and Budget will include funding for Taiwan in the supplemental request as part of an effort to accelerate the provision of arms.

The White House will submit the request this month, and If Congress passes this, Taiwan will get arms through a US taxpayer-funded system known as “foreign military financing” for the first time.

Recently, the White House announced that the United States would provide Taiwan with $345 million approx. worth of weapons from stockpiles for the first time.

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This move was made under the “presidential drawdown authority” system, previously used to send weapons to Ukraine.

As a result, there has been a call to include Taiwan funding in the supplemental budget and use PDAs to supply weapons. This is due to the increasing military activity by China and the need to help Taipei urgently. Some critics of the current Taiwan strategy have urged Washington to provide weapons more quickly.

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Eric Sayers, a managing director at Beacon Global Strategies, a Washington consultancy, believes the US government is now willing to take significant measures to promote deterrence across the Taiwan Strait. This is a significant step forward.

“For decades, we have chosen only to sell Taiwan military equipment, but now . . . we are seeing both the tools of drawdown authority and foreign military financing be deployed, just as they have been so successful in Ukraine,” Sayers added.

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The White House declined to comment or reveal details about how much money would be requested for Taiwan.

Taipei is waiting for $23 billion worth of weapons approved by the US government. These include harpoon missiles and surveillance drones.

The US military has expressed frustration with the slow delivery of these weapons, which were approved more than five years ago.

The delay in receiving these weapons hinders Taiwan’s efforts to improve its security. The US-Taiwan Business Council, a pro-Taiwan group, shared this information.

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The eventual congressional vote on the supplemental budget — which will focus predominantly on new military assistance for Ukraine — will be the first test of support for Kyiv in the current Congress.

The decision to use the presidential drawdown authority is significant because it shows the Biden administration is willing to take steps to bolster Taiwan’s defense capabilities without congressional approval. The Biden Admins have the right to do so.

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This decision can be seen as creating more differences between the United States and China by Biden Administration.

However, Ron DeSantis, the Gov. of Florida, criticized President Joe Biden’s handling of the China-Taiwan issue. “I do think under Biden, we are on a course where in the next five or 10 years, they probably would be able to take it,” he said, referring to China and Taiwan. “If we change course, I think we can prevent it.”

The United States and China have been in Trade War for the last two years, and more tensions in the South China Sea have occurred.

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The Biden administration is concerned that China is preparing to take military action against Taiwan, and the arms sale is seen as a way to Stop China from doing so.

The United States and its allies have imposed severe sanctions on Russia. These sanctions have significantly impacted the Russian economy and are likely to continue.

How Congress will respond to the Biden administration’s request still needs to be determined. Some Republicans can decline the sale, but the Biden administration can argue that the sale is necessary to protect Taiwan and maintain peace in the region.