New Delhi. Tensions between China and Taiwan have reached a war footing after US Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. Taiwan is a major market for the United States in terms of military weapons, according to the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). From former US President George W Bush to current President Joe Biden, the administration is not lagging behind in providing arms to Taiwan. The US has provided more than $500 million in weapons to Taiwan over the past 16 years. In such a situation, it is clear that Taiwan is completely dependent on American weapons to fight the war with China.

When China was furious over the supply of arms
In July 2022 this year, the US signed an agreement to sell weapons worth $ 108 million. When the Defense Ministry of China got the information, it was shocking. The dragon demanded from the US that it should stop supplying weapons to Taiwan. Experts believe that the consignment of modern weapons to Taiwan from the US may increase its difficulties in the event of war. China does not want Taiwan to be armed. According to the report of the International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), 77 percent of the weapons received by Taiwan from 1979 to 2020 were manufactured in the US. Similarly, between 2009 and 2017, during the tenure of former President Barack Obama, a total of $ 1400 million in military weapons were provided by the US to Taiwan. In the year 2019, the US government signed an agreement to sell a total of 66 F-16 fighter aircraft to Taiwan for $ 800 million.

In view of the tension between Russia and Ukraine, the government of Taiwan almost doubled the defense budget. In the budget released in January, the defense budget was increased by $ 8600 million. With this, the total defense budget has gone up to $1700 million. If defense experts are to be believed, this budget includes the purchase of modern weapons to the manufacture of new weapons and missiles. Taiwan is also strengthening itself in the drone sector with US help. Taiwan is working on a number of advanced missiles to strengthen itself, the construction of which is expected to be completed by 2024-25. The Hsuing Fang IIE cruise missile under construction has a range of 1000 to 1200 km which can easily strike the coastal areas of China. According to Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense, more than 100 Hsuing missiles have been completed so far. Soon this figure will be close to 250.