The Ministry of Defense of China urged the United States to revoke its plan to sell weapons to Taiwan, after the US State Department authorized the possible sale of spare parts, components, supplies and accessories for the F-16 fighter to the island for a value of $300 million dollars.
Defense Ministry spokesman Zhang Xiaogang stated on Friday that US arms sales to Taiwan “seriously violate the ‘one China’ principle.”
Zhang pointed out that The transaction “undermines China’s sovereignty and security and represents a serious threat to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”collected the portfolio in a statement.
The spokesman expressed his country’s “strong discontent” and its “firm opposition.”
The spokesperson He stressed that the Taiwan issue is the “first red line that should not be crossed” in relations between China and the United States.
Zhang warned that “supporting Taiwanese separatist forces” will only “increase tension in the region, push Taiwan into a dangerous situation, and ultimately harm the United States.”“.
In a statement, the Ministry of National Defense (MDN) of Taiwan noted this week that the purchase, which will be made official within approximately a month, includes general parts of the F-16 fighter for $220 million and other specific parts for $80 million.
The island Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for its part, indicated that This move demonstrates that Washington’s “security commitment” to Taipei “is rock solid.”.
This sale of military equipment from the United States to Taiwanthe fourteenth under the administration of US President Joe Biden, is the first to be announced after the inauguration of William Lai (Lai Ching-te) as the new president of Taiwan.
The Lai Governmentconsidered a “secessionist” and a “troublemaker” by the authorities in Beijing, was received with two days of military maneuvers by the Chinese Army around the island.
Taiwan -where the Chinese nationalist army retreated after defeat at the hands of communist troops in the civil war- It has been governed autonomously since the end of the warAlthough China claims sovereignty over the island, which he considers a rebellious province for whose “reunification” he has not ruled out the use of force.
The affairs of Taiwan is one of the main points of friction between Beijing and Washington, since the United States is Taipei’s main arms supplier and could defend the island in the event of conflict.
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