Taiwanese soldiers stand guard as CM-11 tanks are deployed for live-fire military exercises at an undisclosed location amid heightened tensions with China in Hsinchu, Taiwan, December 21, 2021. Taiwan faces an escalating military threat from China, including from fighters from the People’s Liberation Army. The US has offered to sell arms to Taiwan, while also being sent to cruise around the island. (Photo by Ceng Shou Yi/NurPhoto, Getty Images)
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China plans to impose sanctions on five American military manufacturers in response to recent US arms sales to Taiwan, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson announced on Sunday.
US arms sales to Taiwan have been a frequent source of tension between the US and China. China considers democratically-ruled Taiwan to be its own territory, but the Taiwanese government rejects this claim.
The sanctions come ahead of Taiwan’s Jan. 13 presidential and parliamentary elections, which China has presented as a choice between war and peace.
The U.S. State Department last month approved a $300 million sale of equipment to help maintain Taiwan’s tactical information systems.
The spokesperson said in a statement that recent arms sales “severely undermine China’s sovereignty and security interests and seriously endanger peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”
The companies sanctioned are BAE Systems Land and Armaments, Alliant Techsystems Operations, AeroVironment, Viasat, and Data Link Solutions.
The Chinese government will freeze the assets of these companies and prohibit individuals and organizations in China from engaging with them, the spokesperson said.
The U.S. Embassy in Beijing did not respond to a request for comment.