National Defense

Taiwan Says It Was Left Out In Cold On US Decision To Freeze Key Arms Shipment Amid Iran War

(Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok)

A top U.S. Navy official revealed Thursday that the U.S. had paused a key arms sale to Taiwan, but Taiwanese officials never got the memo.

Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao said during a Senate subcommittee hearing on Thursday reviewing the president’s fiscal year 2027 budget request for the Navy that he had not “spoken to the Taiwanese” regarding the decision. The sale was slated to be worth $14 billion, according to an open letter sent by multiple senators on May 11.

“At ​present we have not ⁠received any relevant information about the U.S. adjusting these military sales,” Reuters reported, citing Taiwan Presidential Office spokesperson Karen Kuo. Taiwan’s defence ministry had also not been notified, according to Reuters.

President Donald Trump visited Chinese President Xi Jinping on May 14 to discuss trade negotiations, the Strait of Hormuz and Taiwan. Trump referred to the weapons package as a good “negotiating chip” for the United States during an interview with Fox News on May 15.

“However, we are, we have done some military, foreign military sales to them in the past,” Cao said one hour and 11 minutes into the hearing. “It’s just right now we’re doing a pause in order to make sure we have the munitions we need for Epic Fury, which we have plenty, but we are just making sure we have everything, but then the foreign military sales will continue when the administration deems necessary.”

“As with all prospective foreign military sales and security assistance matters, the details remain predecisional until finalized by the President,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell told the Daily Caller New Foundation. “Our Taiwan policy remains unchanged, and the U.S. continues to adhere to long-standing commitment consistent with the Taiwan Relations Act.”

Operation Epic Fury has caused the U.S. military to expend a significant portion of its munition stockpiles. During the operation, the U.S. military used more interceptors defending Israel than Israel used to defend itself, The Washington Post reported, citing defense department assessments.

“U.S. military has lacked sufficient munitions for a protracted conflict against China for years—including well before Operation Epic Fury,” the president of the defense and security department at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Seth Jones, wrote on May 12.

Since the Iran war began, the U.S. military has used somewhere between 45% and 61% of its Patriot missiles, according to a CSIS report.

Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky pressed Cao on whether the sales would actually take place.

“Put another way, do you expect the sale to be approved at some point?” McConnell asked Cao. “Senator, that would be up to the secretary of war and the secretary of state, sir,” Cao replied.

McConnell said leaving the decision up to the Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio is “really distressing.”

“These sales take years to process and are unrelated to Operation Epic Fury,” according to a source familiar with the matter who was granted anonymity. “The United States Military has more than enough munitions, ammo, and stockpiles to serve all of President Trump’s strategic goals and beyond.”

Taiwan received the final delivery of 28 U.S.-made M1 Abrams main battle tanks on April 27, though these tanks are not a part of the proposed $14 billion arms package, the South China Morning Post reported. The full purchase contained 108 M1 Abrams tanks and related support equipment valued at over $2 billion, according to the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency.

U.S. INDOPACOM, the Pentagon and the Taiwanese Military News Agency did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

‘Clock Is Ticking’

As the arms sale is paused because of Operation Epic Fury, a recent Truth Social post from President Donald Trump said that time is running out for negotiations with the Iranian Regime.

“For Iran, the Clock is Ticking, and they better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them,” Trump wrote in the Truth Social post. “TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE! President DJT”

“As President Trump said, he will make a determination in a fairly short time regarding a new Taiwan arms package,” a White House official told the DCNF. “The President approved $11.1 billion in arms sales to Taiwan in December 2025, consistent with U.S. policy since the 1950s. In his first term, President Trump approved more arms sales to Taiwan than any other President in history. In his second term, President Trump approved more in his first year than all four years under President Biden.”

“China’s opposition to U.S. arms sales to China’s Taiwan region is consistent, clear and firm,” Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun said during a press conference on Friday.

U.S. senators have been openly supportive of the arms sale.

“We strongly encourage your administration to formally notify the $14 billion in U.S. arms sales to Taiwan that Congress pre-approved in January 2025,” multiple senators wrote in an open letter on May 11. “Following months of encouragement from bipartisan members of Congress and your administration, Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan today approved a robust special defense budget of $25 billion to enhance the island’s self-defense capabilities.”

If the arms sale is canceled completely, the cancellation may violate the Taiwan Relations Act, passed in 1979, which mandates that the U.S. must provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself.

“The United States will make available to Taiwan such defense articles and defense services in such quantity as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability,” Section 3301 of the law states.