Taiwan hopes new US arms sale package can be approved soon, president says

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te urged the US to approve a new arms sale package, stating that Taiwan's security efforts should not be seen as a provocation to China.

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said on Thursday ​he hoped a new U.S. ​arms sale package can ‌be approved soon, ​and that Taiwan safeguarding its own security and refusing rule by China's Communist Party should not be seen ‌as a provocation. Democratically governed Taiwan is viewed by China as its own territory and Beijing has stepped up military and diplomatic pressure against the island. But Taiwan has also been unnerved ‌by comments last month from U.S. President Donald Trump after he met China's Xi ‌Jinping in Beijing that he was still considering whether to approve new arms sales for Taiwan, saying they were a "very good negotiating chip" with China.

Speaking to the Taiwan Foreign Correspondents' Club in Taipei, Lai ⁠said the ​U.S. security commitment ⁠to Taiwan has not changed. "The key is that Taiwan must not change course in strengthening its own defence ⁠capabilities, nor can it slow its pace," he said.

"We will continue to maintain close communication ​with the U.S. government, and we also hope the arms purchases can be approved ⁠as soon as possible." China calls Lai a "separatist" and has rebuffed his multiple offers of dialogue.

Lai reiterated his ⁠desire ​for talks based on "parity and respect" with China, but said Taiwan had a right to protect its interests and that only the Taiwanese people can decide ⁠their future. "Taiwan's safeguarding of its own national security and maintaining its democratic and free way ⁠of life, its ⁠refusal to accept unification, and its refusal to accept rule by the Chinese Communist Party should not be seen as a provocation against ‌China," he ‌added.