WASHINGTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department

has approved the potential sale of spare parts for F-16 jets and

radars to Taiwan for an estimated $385 million, the Pentagon

said on Friday, a day before Taiwan President Lai Ching-te

starts a sensitive Pacific trip.

The United States is bound by law to provide Chinese-claimed

Taiwan with the means to defend itself despite the lack of

formal diplomatic ties between Washington and Taipei, to the

constant anger of Beijing.

Democratically governed Taiwan rejects China's claims of

sovereignty.

China has been stepping up military pressure against Taiwan,

including two rounds of war games this year, and security

sources have told Reuters that Beijing may hold more to

coincide with Lai's tour of the Pacific, which includes

stopovers in Hawaii and Guam, a U.S. territory.

The Pentagon's Defense Security Cooperation Agency said the

sale consisted of $320 million in spare parts and support for

F-16 fighters and Active Electronically Scanned Array Radars and

related equipment.

The State Department also approved the potential sale to

Taiwan of improved mobile subscriber equipment and support for

an estimated $65 million, the Pentagon said. The principal

contractor for the $65 million sale is General Dynamics ( GD ).

Last month, the United States announced a potential $2

billion arms sale package to Taiwan, including the delivery for

the first time to the island of an advanced air defense missile

system battle tested in Ukraine.

Lai leaves for Hawaii on Saturday on what is officially a

stopover on the way to Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau, three

of the 12 countries that still to have formal diplomatic ties

with Taipei. He will also stop over in Guam.

Hawaii and Guam are home to major U.S. military bases.

China on Friday urged the United States to exercise "utmost

caution" in its relations with Taiwan.

The State Department said it saw no justification for what

it called a private, routine and unofficial transit by Lai to be

used as a pretext for provocation.