US Pauses Taiwan Arms Sale as Iran War Drains Focus

The United States is pausing a $14bn arms sale to Taiwan, with a senior military official saying Washington wants to conserve munitions for its war on Iran.

Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao told lawmakers on Thursday that the administration is holding back the package for now, just a week after the proposed sale came up during talks between US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing.

“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,” Cao told the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense.

“But we’re just making sure we have everything, but then the foreign military sales will continue when the administration deems necessary.”

Cao said any decision to move forward would rest with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The package, approved by Congress in January, would be the largest US weapons transfer to Taiwan ever. It still requires Trump’s approval before it can proceed. If signed off, it would surpass the $11bn Taiwan arms package Trump approved in December.

The pause lands at a sensitive moment. The US-Iran war has been under a ceasefire since April 8, but no permanent peace deal has been reached. Washington is still managing munitions needs for Operation Epic Fury, even as Taiwan faces growing pressure from China.

Taiwanese Premier Cho Jung-tai said Taiwan would continue pursuing arms purchases, according to FTV News.

William Yang, senior analyst for northeast Asia at the Crisis Group, said the pause will “exacerbate anxiety and scepticism about US support in Taiwan and make it difficult for the Taiwanese government to request additional defence budget for the foreseeable future”.

Trump has confirmed that he discussed the arms package with Xi. In an interview with Fox News last week, he said he “may” or “may not” approve it.

He has also suggested the sale could be used as a “negotiating chip”, a sharp departure from the long-standing US practice of not consulting Beijing on arms transfers to Taiwan.

China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and strongly opposes US military support for the self-governing island. Washington does not formally recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but under the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, it is committed to helping the island defend itself.

Trump has also floated the idea of speaking directly with Taiwanese President William Lai Ching-te about the arms deal. That would break with decades of diplomatic protocol and would almost certainly anger Beijing.

Trump previously spoke by phone with former Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen after his 2016 election victory, but that call happened before he was sworn in.