Arms Sales to Taiwan Will Proceed, U.S. Says

Beijing - The Obama administration will proceed with arms sales to Taiwan recently despite protests by Chinese officials, an American official said Tuesday.

The officer, Raymond Burghardt, chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan, the United States really Embassy in Taiwan.

Speaking in a telephone interview from Hawaii, where his life, he said that arms sales to Taiwan is consistent with what White House officials say will be President Obama's policy. "No one should be surprised when we move them time," he said.

Mr. Burghardt declined to say exactly when President Obama will notify Congress of a sale of weapons. The American relationship with Taiwan, which China considers a treacherous province, is one of the most delicious diplomatic issue between Beijing and Washington. The United States takes no position on the sovereignty of Taiwan, but acknowledges that Beijing claims there is only one China.

In the last week, Chinese officials and news organizations have expressed anger over reports that the Obama administration can notify Congress shortly as arms sales. Notification is the final step in the process. American officials here say China can break off military-to-military contacts in the United States once notification is made. When the Pentagon announced in October 2008, under the Bush administration, it will sell Taiwan $ 6.5 billion worth of weapons, China froze the military relationship and contacts continue until the Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton visited Beijing in February.

One of the biggest question is whether the U.S. will sell advanced F-16 fighter jets to Taiwan. Under the officials of President Ma Ying-jeou of Taiwan continue to call for jets; Taiwan is an older model it bought in 1992. In 2008, the United States canceled a deal to sell 66 advanced jets to Taiwan after China strongly objected. Mr. Burghardt said that the sale of F-16s are "under study."

December 9, Reuters quoted Robert Kovač, an official of the Department of State in Washington, as saying that the White House is preparing to notify Congress about a package of arms sales, including design work on diesel -electric submarines and UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.

Foreign Policy magazine also reported online sales of arms is probably soon.

Last Thursday, Chinese officials denounced the potential arms sales. "China is strongly against U.S. arms sales to Taiwan," said Jiang Yu, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman. "Stance is always honest and clear."

The English edition of the state-run Global Times newspaper ran a provocative headline that irked officials of the United States in Beijing after President Obama received the Nobel Peace Prize on Thursday: "Peace Prize winner to sell arms."

Before Mr. Obama's trip to China last month, senior White House officials began preparing the administrative policy towards Taiwan. Jeffrey Bader, the senior director for East Asian affairs in the National Security Council, said a word in early November the Brookings Institution arms sales to Taiwan will continue under Mr. Obama.

American arms sales to Taiwan are governed by Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, passed after the United States established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. It says the U.S. government "will make available to Taiwan" arms of a defensive nature.

Mr. Burghardt said the package put together by the White House will probably include "advanced skills" Patriot missiles, which are among the things the 2008 package. The new package could include minesweepers, he said.

Most of the arms package in 2008 was approved for sale in April 2001, but the Taiwan government, for domestic political reasons, took a long time to gather financing, G. Burghardt said.

Zhang Jing contributed research.