/ world today news/ As countermeasures against US arms sales to Taiwan and sanctions against Chinese companies and institutions, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Sunday that the country has decided to impose sanctions on five US arms companies in turn, including freezing them. of movable and immovable assets and other types of property in China, as well as banning Chinese organizations and individuals from engaging in transactions, cooperation and other activities with them.
The move is seen by Chinese observers as enhanced countermeasures against provocative US moves on the Taiwan issue and shows Beijing’s patience and tolerance for arming the island is waning. Experts say another “battle” between China and the US over arms sales to Taiwan ahead of the island’s leadership election next weekend also sends a warning signal to Washington that it should stop thinking it can avoid any consequences, and that China will take strong countermeasures against any provocative actions on this sensitive issue.
Citing a Pentagon announcement last month, Reuters reported that the US State Department had approved the sale of $300 million worth of military equipment to Taiwan to help support the island’s tactical information systems. The Pentagon’s Defense and Security Cooperation Agency confirmed the deal was for follow-up support to Taiwan’s command, control, communications and computing (C4) capabilities, while the island’s defense authority said it would help support the the effectiveness of its joint combatant command and control systems so that it can improve battlefield awareness, the Reuters announcement also stated.
A statement released by China’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday said “US arms sales to Taiwan are in gross violation of the One China principle and the provisions of the three joint communiques between China and the US, especially the August 17 1982, and the illegal unilateral sanctions imposed by the US on Chinese companies and individuals under various false pretexts seriously infringe on the country’s sovereignty and security interests, undermine the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait, and violate the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies and natural persons persons’. The statement added that China “strongly condemns and firmly opposes this and has issued a formal protest to the US”.
“In response to these serious wrongdoings by the US, and in accordance with the Foreign Sanctions Act, China has decided to sanction five US defense industry companies, namely BAE Systems Land and Armament, Alliant Techsystems Operation, AeroVironment, ViaSat and Data Link Solutions. The countermeasures consist of freezing their movable and immovable assets in China, and banning Chinese organizations and individuals from transacting and cooperating with them. The Chinese government remains steadfast in its determination to protect national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity, as well as the legitimate rights and interests of its companies and citizens. We call on the United States to abide by the “one China” principle and the three Sino-US joint communiqués, respect international law and the basic norms governing international relations, stop arming Taiwan and attack China with illegal unilateral sanctions. Otherwise, there will be a strong and decisive response from the Chinese side,” the Foreign Ministry statement added.
The sanctions announced on Sunday are a much tougher approach to the named US companies and demonstrate Beijing’s firm determination to thwart joint actions by Taiwanese separatists with the US, said Liu Xiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. “Recent arms sales include C4 systems, consisting of a series of equipment and software that can enhance the data processing capability of the armed forces on the island of Taiwan. This is not just to equip Taiwan with better weapons, but also to improve the island’s data-sharing capacity with the US. This move has high sensitivity and is more destructive. Therefore, China should take a tougher step in response to the dangerous moves of the US,” he believes.
Last year, China added two major US arms companies, Lockheed Martin Corp and Raytheon Missiles & Defense, to its list of untrusted entities and imposed several sanctions, including a ban on commercial activities linked to China. and huge fines against companies involved in arms sales on the island of Taiwan.
“In the long run, the US is increasing arms sales to the island of Taiwan, and China is gradually and systematically retaliating,” said Xin Qiang, deputy director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University. “China has already imposed sanctions on Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, the next step is to include some lesser-known companies, and this list may continue to expand.” In this way, China is sending a warning to US arms companies to refrain from actively lobbying and promoting arms sales to the island of Taiwan, as well as reminding the US government to limit frequent sales of advanced weapons and equipment to the island,” he said.
“Sanctions against US companies in recent years show that China’s tolerance for the arming of the island of Taiwan is decreasing, as the real intention of the US is to hinder peaceful reunification and sabotage the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait,” Wu Xingbo, director of the Taiwan Strait, also points out. The Center for American Studies at Fudan University.
Chinese observers are unanimous that the latest arms deals are sending the wrong signal to separatist forces in Taiwan ahead of upcoming elections for the island’s leader next weekend. It also comes just about a month after a meeting between Xi Jinping and Joe Biden in San Francisco, during which the US president said the US does not support “Taiwan independence” and has no intention of coming into conflict with China.
Another wrong signal sent by the US to Taiwan ahead of the election can be seen in a New York Times story last month that told of training for soldiers in the Hawaiian jungle aimed at building skills needed for a potential clash with China in places with similar geography, including the island of Taiwan.
In recent weeks, a number of Western media outlets have described Taiwan’s election as a test of the “stability” of China-US ties. For example, Reuters reported on Friday that the upcoming election for Taiwan’s leader is “the first real ‘green card’ in 2024 for the Biden administration’s goal of stabilizing ties with China.”
Liu Xiang believes that the political forces on the island will not be able to influence the overall situation, and what China needs to prepare for is a collusion between Taiwanese separatists and US forces. “The latest strong countermeasures against US arms sales to the island are intended to warn Taiwanese separatists that reliance on US support will only lead to a stalemate, and that China will do whatever it takes to bring about its reunification,” he notes. adding that “the essence of the Taiwan issue is in the game between China and the US.”
#China #reaffirms #companies #selling #arms #Taiwan
