The huge US weapons package for Taiwan includes the HIMARS rocket system, howitzers, anti-tank missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Published December 18, 2025
The United States has approved $11.1 billion in arms sales to Taiwan. It is one of the biggest arms packages in Washington’s history against the autonomous island, which Beijing has pledged to reunite with mainland China.
The U.S. State Department announced the agreement late Wednesday during President Donald Trump’s nationally televised address.
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The proposed sale includes 82 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 420 Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) worth more than $4 billion, similar to the defense systems the United States was providing to Ukraine to protect against Russian air strikes.
The contract also includes 60 self-propelled howitzer systems and related equipment worth more than $4 billion and unmanned aircraft worth more than $1 billion.
Other sales in the package include more than $1 billion worth of military software, more than $700 million worth of Javelin and TOW missiles, $96 million worth of helicopter spare parts, and $91 million worth of Harpoon missile modification kits.
In a series of separate statements announcing details of the arms deal, the Pentagon said the sale serves U.S. national, economic, and security interests by supporting Taiwan’s continued efforts to modernize its military and maintain a “credible defense capability.”
Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense and the Presidential Office welcomed the news, but China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Huge arms sales by the United States to Taiwan are likely to infuriate China, which claims the island is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to take control of the island.
“The United States will continue to assist Taiwan in maintaining sufficient self-defense capabilities and rapidly building a strong deterrent force,” Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
Taiwan Presidential Office Spokesperson Karen Kuo said Taiwan will continue to reform its defense sector, “strengthen the defense capabilities of society as a whole” and “demonstrate our determination to protect ourselves and protect peace by force.”
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office said on Wednesday that it “opposes the US Congress’ efforts to pass Taiwan-related legislation and firmly opposes any form of military contact between the US and Taiwan.”
“We call on the United States to abide by the ‘one China’ principle and the three provisions of the China-US joint communiqué: to stop providing weapons to Taiwan, to stop reviewing related legislation, and to stop interfering in China’s internal affairs,” Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the bureau, said in a statement.
Zhu said Taiwan’s political leaders are pursuing “independence” and are “willing to allow outside forces to turn the island into a ‘porcupine of war'”, which could result in “a despicable act in which the population becomes cannon fodder” and is slaughtered at will.
Last month, Taiwanese President William Lai Ching-de announced an additional $40 billion in defense spending from 2026 to 2033, saying there was “no room for compromise on national security.”
