From Sandra Johnson
WASHINGTON: China expressed firm opposition to the US State Department’s approval of an arms sale to China’s Taiwan region, and urged the US to earnestly abide by the one-China principle, according to a spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in Washington.
China will resolutely take legitimate and necessary counter-measures in light of the development of the situation, CGTN reported Sunday citing Spokesperson Liu Pengyu’s tweet.
This came after the Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced on Friday that the U.S. State Department had approved the sale of 60 anti-ship missiles, 100 air-to-air missiles and contractor logistics support to Taiwan in a deal valued at $1.1 billion.
Noting that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory, the spokesperson said that the United States 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, particularly the August 17 communique, Liu stressed.
He also pointed out that the move sends wrong signals to “Taiwan independence” separatist forces, and severely jeopardizes China-U.S. relations and peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits.
The spokesperson urged the U.S. side to honor its commitments, earnestly abide by the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiques, stop arms sales to and military interactions with Taiwan, and immediately revoke relevant arms sales to Taiwan, lest more damage be dealt to China-U.S. relations and peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits. In April, China had expressed its firm opposition to the US approval of an arms deal with Taiwan worth $95 million and pledged to take firm and forceful measures to resolutely safeguard its sovereignty and security interests.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian had said that the arms sale severely encroaches on China’s sovereignty, security and development interests, damages China-US relations and endangers peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits.
He had urged the US to earnestly abide by the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques and cease arms sales and military interactions with Taiwan.
Ma Xiaoguang, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, urged the US to immediately rectify its wrong move and stop playing with fire on issues concerning Taiwan. Ma also slammed Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party authority for colluding with external forces to seek “independence” and political self-interests.
–The Daily Mail-CGTN news exchange item
