Taiwan has already held preliminary talks with the United States about what weapons it wants to buy as part of a $40-billion supplementary defence budget, Defence Minister Wellington Koo said on Thursday.

Taipei, Taiwan — Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te on Wednesday announced a special $40 billion budget for arms purchases, including to build a Taiwan Dome, an air defense system with high-level detection and interception capabilities, as the U.S. pressures the island to increase its defense spending.

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te outlined his administration’s proposal for a $40 billion defense supplemental this week that would fund an island-wide air defense system and the procurement of missiles,

The New Zealand navy's largest ship, the oiler HMNZS Aotearoa, made a rare transit through the sensitive Taiwan Strait earlier this month, Defence Minister Judith Collins told Reuters.

The remarks come amid the two countries’ worst diplomatic crisis in years, after the Japanese prime minister said a Chinese attack on Taiwan could trigger a military response from Tokyo.

China closed off Japanese seafood imports after Japan’s new leader declared strong support for Taiwan. Suddenly, sushi is everywhere on Taiwanese social media.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi says Japan has "crossed a red line” with comments by the country's new leader suggesting a potential military intervention over Taiwan