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by Our Foreign Desk
BEIJING warned US companies yesterday against selling arms to Taiwan and said that doing so will come at a price.
“China resolutely opposes the sale of weapons to Taiwan by the US,” Deputy Foreign Minister Zheng Zeuang told US diplomats in Beijing.
“In order to safeguard the nation’s interests, the Chinese side has decided to take necessary measures, including the imposition of sanctions against companies participating in the arms sale to Taiwan,” he added.
The Obama administration had announced a $1.83 billion (£1.32bn) arms sale to Taiwan on Wednesday, drawing an immediate complaint from Beijing.
Even before the announcement of the arms package, Beijing had demanded that it be scrapped to avoid harming relations across the Taiwan Strait and between China and the US.
That was followed by a formal diplomatic protest late Wednesday, although at a lower level than in previous such instances.
Washington and its arms companies have clearly decided to gamble against sanctions being imposed since they have been threatened in the past.
The US maintains that there is no need for the arms deal to hurt the relationship with China, pointing to Beijing’s island construction in the South China Sea and alleged cyber-theft.
The proposed arms package includes two decommissioned US navy frigates, anti-tank missiles, amphibious assault vehicles and Stinger surface-to-air missiles.
There’s also support for Taiwan’s capabilities in intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and a weapons system to defend against anti-ship missiles.
US politicians in Congress welcomed the deal, with many urging more frequent arms sales to Taiwan.
