Washington: The US House of Representatives passed an anti-China defense spending bill on Thursday, comprising about $10 billion in military grant aid for Taiwan and seeking to expedite arms sales to the island.
Meanwhile. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for 2023 – which still needs Senate passage and the approval of President Joe Biden to become law would authorize grant aid for Taiwan of up to $2 billion per year from 2023 to 2027.
The act also authorizes Joe Biden to provide Taiwan with up to $1 billion per year in defense stuff from US stockpiles, or other services such as military training and skills.
US House Passes Anti-China Bill
Further, it requires the secretaries of State and Defense to “prioritize and accelerate the processing of requests from Taiwan under the Foreign Military Sales program.”
Foreign Relations Committee chair, Senator Bob Menendez, said in a statement prior to the bill’s passage that the NDAA “will dramatically increase the United States defense partnership with Taiwan.
Meanwhile soon after the bill passed, foreign ministry spokeswoman of China Mao Ning told reporters that Beijing opposed the US using the NDAA to pass negative content related to China.