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News > World

China Slams US Approval of Arms Sale to Taiwan

  • UH-60M Black Hawk in military exercises, Taiwan.

    UH-60M Black Hawk in military exercises, Taiwan. | Photo: Twitter/ @Travis_Chuang

Published 5 August 2021
Opinion

The United States is undermining China's sovereignty and security interests by selling arms to the Taiwan region.

China on Thursday expressed firm opposition to the U.S. approval of an arms sale to Taiwan, and has lodged solemn representations with the U.S. side.

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"China will take legitimate and necessary counter-measures in light of the development of the situation," said a Foreign Ministry spokesperson.

On August 4, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced that the U.S. State Department (DOS) approved the sale of 40 Medium Self-Propelled Howitzer artillery systems to Taiwan in a deal valued at US$750 million.

Noting that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory, the spokesperson said that the U.S. is interfering in China's internal affairs and undermining China's sovereignty and security interests by selling arms to the Taiwan region.

"The move runs counter to international law and the basic principles of international relations, and violates the one-China principle and the provisions of the three China-U.S. joint communiques."

The spokesperson said the move sends erroneous signals to "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, and severely jeopardizes China-U.S. relations and peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. 

In allowing this latest arms sale, President Joe Biden is replicating the geopolitical behavior followed by the Donald Trump administration, which also sponsored the Taiwanese government's arms race.

Since 2016, Taiwan has purchased over US$16.7 billion worth of weaponry from the United States. According to the DOS, the sale is aimed at "strengthening Taiwan's self-defense capabilities against current and future threats," as outlet South China Morning Post reported.

In 2019, however, Chinese President Xi Jinping declared that his government's goal is to achieve a "peaceful reunification." 

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