Beijing, January 09: China has objected to the US plans to sell missile equipment to Taiwan, urging Washington to abandon the move as it would undermine trust between the US and Chinese militaries.
“The US arms sales to Taiwan infringe upon China’s security interest[s] as well as peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and interfere with China’s internal affairs,” Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Jiang Yu said in a statement on Saturday.
The reaction follows the US Defense Department’s approval of the sale of Patriot missile equipment to Taiwan despite opposition to the move by China.
The Pentagon in October 2008 notified Congress of $6.5bn in arms sales to Taiwan.
The deal will allow weapons manufacturer Lockheed Martin Corp. to sell Taiwan over 250 advanced Patriot missiles.
Taiwan estimates that China has up to 1,500 missiles aimed at the self-ruled island, which Beijing claims as its own.
The latest Chinese Foreign Ministry statement came hours after China’s Defense Ministry issued a separate warning that it reserved the right to take unspecified further action if Washington followed through with the plan.
“The US side clings obstinately to the Bush administration’s plan of arms sales to Taiwan, which severely undermines the mutual trust between the two militaries,” said Defense Ministry Spokesman Huang Xueping in an official statement.
He added that China urges the United States “to sever military links with Taiwan, in order to avoid further damaging relations between the two countries and the two militaries and the peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”
——-Agencies