Washington approves $440 million in weapons sales to Taiwan

June 30 (UPI) -- The U.S. State Department approved the sale of $440 million in ammunition and spare parts to Taiwan, the Pentagon announced, as tensions with China over the democratic island remain elevated.

Washington will sell $332 million in 30mm ammunition and related equipment and $108 million in spare parts for wheeled vehicles and weapons, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Thursday.

The sales, which were requested by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States, will "not alter the basic military balance in the region," the DSCA said.

"The proposed sale will help improve the security of the recipient and assist in maintaining political stability, military balance and economic progress in the region," the Pentagon agency said.

Taiwan's Defense Ministry said Friday that the sales would help Taipei strengthen resilience and build up capacity in the face of China's "continuous expansion of military and gray zone tactics, [which] have posed a serious threat."

Beijing has conducted a steady stream of military flights and other provocations around the democratic island in recent years, a tactic Taiwanese defense officials say is meant to strain defense capabilities and wear down morale.

On Friday, China sent 24 warplanes and five battleships near the island, Taiwan's Defense Ministry said, with 11 of the aircraft crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait.

The move followed last week's passage of a Chinese aircraft carrier group through the narrow Taiwan Strait, as Beijing appears to be ramping up pressure on Taipei.

China considers the island of 23 million a wayward province and has vowed to seize control of it by force if necessary. Taiwan has never been a part of the mainland People's Republic of China, which was founded in 1949, and rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims.

The island has also been a growing source of friction in China-U.S. relations.

Last week, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing and told reporters he raised concerns about China's "provocative actions in the Taiwan Strait and South and East China seas."

The United States does not recognize the island diplomatically but sells Taipei weapons under a 1979 law that stipulates threats to the island are "of grave concern." President Joe Biden has ruffled feathers in Beijing on several occasions by saying that the U.S. military would defend Taiwan against invasion attempts from China, statements that White House officials have later walked back.

The proposed arms sale by Washington is the second this year and the 10th since Biden took office in 2021.