China will proceed with sanctions against five US manufacturers in retaliation for the latest US arms sale to Taiwan, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said in Beijing today.
Arms sales from Washington to Taipei are a source of frequent tensions with Beijing.
China considers Taiwan its province. The island’s current government rejects the Chinese position.
The sanctions are announced days before Taiwan holds presidential and parliamentary elections on Saturday, January 13.
For Beijing, the choice in these is between peace or war.
In December, the State Department approved $300 million worth of equipment sales to Taiwan, particularly to help it maintain military IT systems.
For Chinese diplomacy, the recent sale “seriously undermines China’s national sovereignty and national security interests, seriously endangers peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”
The companies to be sanctioned are BAE Systems Land and Armaments, Alliant Techsystems Operations, AeroVironment, Viasat and Data Link Solutions.
The authorities in Beijing will freeze any resources of these companies in their jurisdiction and will prohibit any natural or legal person in China from doing business with them, the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs states.
The US embassy in Beijing has not yet responded to Reuters’ request for comment on the development.
Source: RES-MPE
