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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 US to announce new weapons package: US officials
A US Air Force MQ-9 Reaper drone sits in a hangar at Amari Air Base, Estonia, on July 1, 2020. Photo: Reuters
By Mike Stone and Idrees Ali / Reuters, WASHINGTON
The US was expected to announce as early as yesterday Washington time that it would provide Taiwan with more than US$300 million in military assistance, two US officials said.
The US Congress authorized up to US$1 billion of Presidential Drawdown Authority weapons aid for Taiwan for this year’s budget.
One official, speaking on the condition anonymity, said the package is expected to be worth about US$330 million.
The White House declined to comment.
The formal announcement was not expected to include a list of weapon systems being provided.
In recent weeks, four sources said the package was expected to include four unarmed MQ-9A reconnaissance drones, but added that their inclusion could fall through as officials work through details on removing some of the advanced equipment from the drones that only the US Air Force is allowed access to.
Another issue was who would pay for the alterations to the drones, one of the people briefed on the matter said.
Reuters could not determine if the drones were still part of the package.
The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Taiwan had previously agreed to purchase four, more advanced, MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones, made by General Atomics, which are scheduled for delivery in 2025.
Foreshadowing the upcoming aid, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on May 16 told a Senate panel: “And I’m pleased that the United States will soon provide significant additional security assistance to Taiwan through the Presidential Drawdown Authority that Congress authorized last year.”
Earlier this month, the top US general said that Washington and its allies need to speed up the delivery of weapons to Taiwan in the coming years to help the nation defend itself.
US Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley had said that Taiwan needed weapons like air defense systems and those that could target ships from land.
Taiwan has said its defense spending this year would focus on preparing weapons and equipment for a “total blockade” by China, including parts for F-16 jets and replenishing weapons.
Presidential Drawdown Authority has been used on an emergency basis to expedite security assistance to Ukraine by allowing the president to transfer articles and services from US stockpiles.
However, the Taiwan authority is a non-emergency authority approved by Congress last year.
Taiwan has complained of delays to US weapon deliveries, such as Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, as shipments from US stockpiles moved to Ukraine.
Shu Hsiao-huang （舒孝煌）, an analyst at the Institute of National Defense and Research, said that the US could be giving Taiwan the more immediately available — albeit older — MQ-9A drone as a stand-in, since the advanced B variant the nation ordered are scheduled for delivery in 2027, he said.
The general sense of US think tanks is that Taiwan should increase its capability to detect and monitor Chinese activities in the nation’s peripherals, he said, adding that drones would enhance its ability to counter Beijing’s “gray zone” tactics.
The MQ-9A has a loiter time of 27 hours, while the MQ9-B has a loiter time of 40 hours and a higher maximum takeoff weight, Hsu said.
Additional reporting by Wu Su-wei
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
