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China said Monday it would impose sanctions on Lockheed Martin, a defense division of Boeing, and other US firms involved in arms sales to Taiwan, the autonomous island that Beijing considers its territory.
The two American giants participated in a recent sale of missiles worth nearly $ 2 billion to Taiwan, along with Raytheon, and Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian urged the United States to stop the sale of weapons to the island.
Taiwan’s status has the potential for conflict between the United States and China, during a broader struggle for technology, security and commercial supremacy.
Beijing says Taiwan is an inviolable part of China that must recover, by force if necessary.
Zhao said the sanctions were “to safeguard national interests” and would apply to those “who have misbehaved in the process of selling arms to Taiwan.”
“We will continue to take the necessary measures to safeguard national sovereignty and security interests,” Zhao said, without elaborating on the sanctions.
Under President Donald Trump, the United States has put Taiwan on the line as part of a broader diplomatic and economic squeeze from its rival, sending high-level envoys and boosting arms sales.
The State Department said last week that it had approved the sale of 135 air-to-ground missiles, a move welcomed by Taiwan.
The sale of six MS-110 aerial reconnaissance capsules and 11 M142 mobile light rocket launchers were also approved, bringing the value of the three weapons packages to $ 1.8 billion.
Beijing has increased diplomatic and military pressure on Taiwan since the 2016 election of President Tsai Ing-wen, who views the island as a de facto sovereign nation and not as part of “One China.”
A statement from the US State Department last week said the SLAM-ER missiles would help Taiwan “face current and future threats.”
The missiles provide “all-weather, day and night precision strike capabilities against both moving and stationary targets” on land or in the ocean, the statement added.
Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said the weapons would help it “build credible combat capabilities and strengthen the development of asymmetric warfare.”
Chinese fighter jets and bombers have entered Taiwan’s air defense zone with increasing frequency in recent months, while propaganda films have shown simulated attacks on territories similar to Taiwan.
China also launched a diplomatic offensive aimed at wooing Taiwan’s few official allies, persuading the Solomon Islands and Kiribati to switch sides last year.
Earlier this month, a senior White House official urged Taiwan to develop its military capabilities to protect itself against a possible invasion from China.
Beijing, in turn, has accused Washington of violating the agreements signed in the 1970s establishing diplomatic relations between the two governments.
China has sanctioned Lockheed for previous arms sales to Taiwan.
sbr-rox / apj / leg
