U.S.-Taiwan weapon sales agreement angers China.

• Author: Tadjdeh, Yasmin
• Position: Global Defense

A new arms deal to Taiwan threatens to increase tensions between Washington and Beijing.

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The agreement, which is worth around $1.4 billion, includes the sale of radar, upgrades to electronic weapon suites, advanced torpedoes and missiles to Taipei. Announced in late June, it is the first such deal to Taiwan under the Trump administration.

The Chinese government--which considers Taiwan to be a renegade province--quickly condemned the agreement.

"China is firmly opposed to the U.S. arms sale to Taiwan," the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C, said in a statement. "China's stance is clear and firm. The U.S. nevertheless made the wrong decision to... [sell] arms to Taiwan in disregard of China's strong representations."

Under its "One China" policy, the United States does not officially recognize Taiwan as an independent nation.

According to the Chinese Embassy, the arms deal undermines a consensus reached by President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping during talks at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida earlier this year.

Patrick Cronin, senior director at the Center for a New American Security's Asia-Pacific Security program, said the deal is consistent with past U.S. presidents' efforts to sell Taiwan defensive arms.

"It's intended to slow down the deterioration of the military balance across the Taiwan Strait," he said. The "mainland is getting the upper hand with respect to the cross-strait military balance...