NewsNation

Lawmakers sound alarm for urgent weapons transfer to Taiwan

Joe Khalil

FILE- Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, center, is greeted before a Bipartisan Leadership Meeting at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif., on April 5, 2023. China is imposing sanctions against the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and other U.S.- and Asian-based organizations in retaliation for the closely watched meeting this week between the U.S. House Speaker and Taiwan’s president. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu, File)

(NewsNation) — Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have raised concerns that the United States needs to send more weapons, and not to Ukraine, but to Taiwan.

This renewed call to arm Taiwan comes as a congressional delegation just wrapped up a surprise trip to the country, where they concluded that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan is becoming more likely, mirroring Russia’s attempted takeover of Ukraine.


The delegation’s takeaway from their trip was that victory in Ukraine and the continuous flow of weapons to the Taiwanese military is the best way to deter China from invading Taiwan.

However, there is a serious concern among lawmakers who made the trip, like Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Michael McCaul, R-Texas, that the U.S. is far behind on equipping its Taiwanese allies.

Others like Senator Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., went even further, saying failure to send more weapons to Taiwan now will spark a war.

“They’re not where they need to be. If we want deference for peace, we need to get these weapons into Taiwan. I sign off on all foreign military weapons sales. 22 weapons systems over three years ago checked that have yet to get into Taiwan, into the island. That will provide deterrence to Chairman Xi to think twice about an invasion,” said McCaul.

Graham recommended increasing training and giving Taiwan “the F-16s they need.”

“There’s a backlog,” Graham said. “I would solve that backlog. I would move more forces to South Korea and Japan. I would put nuclear-tipped cruise missiles in all of our submarines all over the world. I would up our game. And if you don’t up your game now, you are gonna have a war.”

McCaul further suggested that the U.S. military should ramp up combat training for Taiwan’s military as well.

China is in the midst of a series of military drills, including flying fighter jets over Taiwan this weekend, which American officials call a provocation.

Beijing had warned that this was coming as retaliation for Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen meeting with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on American soil earlier this week.