WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th November, 2022) US authorities are concerned that the flow of weapons to Ukraine could cause a deficit in terms of Washington's long-term plans to arm Taiwan amid increasing tensions with China, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Last December, the backlog of deliveries for Taiwan was more than $14 billion, and has since grown to $18.7 billion, the newspaper said on Sunday, citing government and congressional officials.
Sources told The Wall Street Journal that 208 Javelin anti-tank weapons ordered in December 2015, as well as 215 surface-to-air Stinger missiles ordered that same year, have not yet arrived on the island.
Defense companies, including Lockheed Martin Corp. and Boeing Co. have pointed out that there were setbacks in production even before Russia started its special operation in Ukraine, in part due to supply chain problems resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
At the same time, neither the US State Department nor Pentagon have acknowledged the backlog in terms of deliveries to Taiwan, according to the newspaper.
