US Strengthens Military Ties With Taiwan

In December 2023, the Biden administration approved its 12th arms sale to Taiwan. President Joe Biden signed measures into law calling for strengthened US military ties with Taiwan. China reacted negatively to these measures, as anticipated.

On 15 December the US announced a $300 million arms sale to Taiwan that the Pentagon indicated was designed to help Taiwan upgrade its command, control, communications, and computer (C4) capabilities. Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense announced that the new US sale will take effect in one month. 

During the November 2023 summit between Presidents Biden and Xi, the Chinese leader requested that the US cease arms sales to Taiwan. Experts in China opined that the latest arms sale announcement is an indication that the US rejected Xi’s request. The Chinese government quickly responded to the latest arms sale announcement.

• On 16 December, Beijing dispatched 27 sorties of aircraft and nine ships around Taiwan. 
• On 18 December, China’s Foreign Ministry announced that China would take retaliatory actions against companies involved in the sale. Lockheed Martin is providing the new C4 system. 
• On 7 January, China announced sanctions against five US defense-related companies for their roles in arms sales to Taiwan; however, Lockheed Martin is not among the sanctioned companies. 

On 22 December, several days after the announcement of the latest arms sale to Taiwan, President Biden signed the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) into law. The NDAA contains the following provisions requiring the US to strengthen military ties with Taiwan:

• The US government shall establish “a comprehensive training, advising, and institutional capacity-building program” for the Taiwan military; and
• US officials shall engage with their Taiwan counterparts to identify areas for cooperation on “defensive military cybersecurity activities.”

The NDAA also requires the Executive Branch to brief Congress on the following Taiwan-related military activities and scenarios:

• The status of US-provided security assistance to Taiwan;
• An assessment of the global economic impact of a possible Chinese invasion of Taiwan “or certain other aggressive or coercive actions” with respect to Taiwan; and
• Economic policy options that would “cause escalating impacts” on China’s economy “during a pre-conflict phase” in Taiwan-related scenarios. 

On 27 December China’s Foreign Ministry and National People’s Congress issued separate statements denouncing the Taiwan-related provisions in the NDAA and threatened counteractions. 

Pamir anticipates that military tensions in the Taiwan Strait will persist and may even increase before the 20 May Taiwan presidential inauguration ceremony. Pamir advises US businesses to adopt contingency measures in anticipation of possible disruptions to regional business activities that would result from Chinese displays of force in the Taiwan Strait.