WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has approved the first-ever U.S. military transfer to Taiwan under a program generally reserved for assistance to sovereign, independent states.

Beijing, which regards Taiwan as a renegade province, has repeatedly refused to rule out the use of force to reunite it with the mainland and vociferously protests all U.S. arms sales to the self-governing island.

China’s foreign ministry immediately lashed out at the move, calling it a violation of U.S. commitments under its “one-China” policy and a number of subsequent agreements in which Washington pledged not to support Taiwanese independence.

FMF simply enables eligible partner nations to purchase U.S. defense articles, services, and training through either FMS or, for a limited number of countries, through the foreign military financing of direct commercial contracts (FMF/DCC) program.” The officials were not authorized to comment publicly and did so on condition of anonymity.

The notification, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, did not specify what military equipment or systems would be paid for under FMF, which commits U.S. taxpayer dollars to pay for the supply of materiel to foreign countries.

“These weapons will not only help Taiwan and protect other democracies in the region, but also strengthen the U.S. deterrence posture and ensure our national security from an increasingly aggressive CCP,” he said in a statement, referring to the Chinese Communist Party.

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