Taiwan is in talks to buy arms worth up to $10 billion from the United States in an effort to secure Donald Trump’s support in the face of an increasingly hostile China.

The package, which is currently under discussion, is meant to prove to the US president that Taiwan is committed to defending itself, sources told Reuters news agency.

“I would be very surprised if it was less than $8 billion. Somewhere between $7 billion to $10 billion,” said one person, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The news follows the US state department’s deletion of the phrase “we do not support Taiwan independence” from an online fact sheet.

Beijing has since warned Washington that the updated website – which contradicts a US policy position held since diplomatic relations between the two superpowers began in the 1970s – sends a “seriously wrong message to Taiwan independence separatist forces”.

While the self-governed island, which split from mainland China in 1949, has always insisted it is an independent state, Beijing claims sovereignty.