US to send Taiwan weapons from stockpile for first time

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“China is firmly opposed to US’ military ties with and arms sales to Taiwan,” Chinese embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu said in a statement. Mr Liu called on the US to “stop creating new factors that could lead to tensions in the Taiwan Strait”. The weapons and support equipment will come from existing stockpiles. The arms will be directly provided for the first time under what is known as a Presidential Drawdown Authority. That lets the US sidestep the often-lengthy process of contracting and producing weapons, which lawmakers say has resulted in a $US19 billion backlog in armaments that have been...