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((INTRO: )) [[China is slamming a decision by the Biden administration to approve a $619 million potential arms sale to Taiwan that includes hundreds of missiles for F-16 fighter jets. Tensions are high between Washington and Beijing, amid Western fears that Beijing may supply weapons to help Russia win its war in Ukraine.
White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has this report.]]
Content TypePackage
LanguageEnglish
Transcript/ScriptUS China Tensions TV
HEADLINE: China Slams US Plans to Sell Missiles to Taiwan
TEASER: US-China tensions high amid Western fears that Beijing may supply weapons to help Russia's war in Ukraine
PUBLISHED AT: 3/2/23 at 10:30pm
BYLINE: Patsy Widakuswara
DATELINE: White House
VIDEOGRAPHER:
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT EDITORS: Jepsen, Holly Franko
VIDEO SOURCE (S): AFP, AP
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _x_ RADIO __
TRT: 2:42
VID APPROVED BY: wpm
TYPE: TV
EDITOR NOTES: Radio track included.))
((INTRO: )) [[China is slamming a decision by the Biden administration to approve a $619 million potential arms sale to Taiwan that includes hundreds of missiles for F-16 fighter jets. Tensions are high between Washington and Beijing, amid Western fears that Beijing may supply weapons to help Russia win its war in Ukraine. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has this report.]]
((NARRATOR)) Taiwanese F-16 fighter jets will receive hundreds of missiles and related equipment under a proposed $619 million arms sale that Congress was notified of by the Biden administration this week. The move is a violation of Chinese sovereignty, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning. ((Mao Ning, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson)) ((Needs English VO))
“The U.S. claims to respect territorial sovereignty, but it has walked on the edge, pushed the envelope and violated its commitment to the Taiwan issue, and even sold advanced weapons to China's Taiwan region.” ((NARRATOR)) Foreign military sales are usually state-to-state, but the administration says the proposal, likely to pass Congress with bipartisan support, is consistent with the Taiwan Relations Act. The law allows Washington to sell weapons to Taiwan to maintain sufficient self-defense against China. Beijing considers the self-governing island a breakaway province. Taipei’s representative in the U.S. says they appreciate U.S. commitment to strengthening Taiwan's self-defense. The trade lobby group U.S.-Taiwan Business Council says that the administration is trying to build munition stocks in case of a Chinese blockade of the island. ((Radio track: Rupert Hammond-Chambers, the council’s president, via Skype)) ((Rupert Hammond-Chambers, US-Taiwan Business Council)) ((Skype)) “Taiwan has to be supplied through the air or the sea. And if the PLA is disrupting access to the air and sea, it's problematic to provide munitions. So we have to pre-position as much as we possibly can on the island.” ((NARRATOR)) The administration denies that the sale will put further strain on the U.S. defense industry, which is struggling to supply munitions to Ukraine as it defends itself against Russia’s aggression. ((Radio track: National Security Council Strategic Communications Coordinator John Kirby)) ((John Kirby, National Security Council)) “Arm sales is a whole different process and methodology than what we're doing for Ukraine, which is largely through presidential drawdown authority where you're basically taking stuff that are already on your shelves and providing it to Ukraine directly. So it's a completely different process, different system altogether.” ((NARRATOR)) The proposed sale further inflames heightened tensions with Beijing, ((NATSOUND Russian rocket launch))
amid Western fears that China is considering providing weapons to help Russia’s war in Ukraine and the growing ties between Moscow and Beijing. Earlier this week China rolled out the red carpet for Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a close Russian ally. ((Radio track: Patrick Cronin, the Asia-Pacific security chair at the Hudson Institute, via Skype)) ((Patrick Cronin, Hudson Institute)) ((Skype)) “Might China try to send some type of armament to Belarus? If so, the line between going to Belarus and to Russia is very fine one.” ((NARRATOR)) A meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin is also planned.
Patsy Widakuswara, VOA News, at the White House.
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)
The White House
Embargo DateMarch 3, 2023 00:54 EST
Byline
Patsy Widakuswara, VOA News, at the White House.
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English