• The American president has stepped up the frequency of weapons deals with the island, and officials now talk of making the process routine business
• In doing so, Washington has shown its willingness to confront Beijing even when relations are at their lowest ebb

South China Morning Post
Date: 25 Aug, 2019
By: Cary Huang  

The Trump administration’s green light for the sale of 66 fighter jets to Taiwan . will not make much operational military impact. But it delivers a strong message about the US commitment to defend the East Asian democracy. And, more notably, it underscores a significant change in Washington’s geopolitical considerations under its “Indo-Pacific” strategy, which aims to contain China

.The sale will be the largest and most significant shipment of weaponry to the self-ruled island in decades, since George H.W. Bush approved the sale of 150 fighter jets in 1992. In 2011, the Barack Obama government rejected Taiwan’s request to buy F-16C/D planes, but agreed to upgrade the island’s F-16A/B fighters, bought in 1992.The United States

 is obliged to help defend Taiwan by providing “arms of defensive character” under the Taiwan Relations Act, which was passed in 1979 when Washington switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing.    [FULL  STORY]