We firmly oppose US arms sales to Taiwan

China’s Defense Ministry said on Wednesday that Beijing firmly opposes US arms sales to Taiwan And it made strong objections to Washington.

“The United States ignored China’s core concerns, violently interfered in China’s internal affairs and deliberately stoked tension in the Taiwan Strait,” ministry spokesman Tan Kefei said in a statement.

The US Department of Defense said last week that the US State Department had approved the potential sale of ammunition and logistical support to Taiwan in Two separate deals worth up to $440 million.

This sale, of modest size, does not expand the range of US weapons delivered to Taiwan, but it comes at a time when Washington and Beijing are trying to stabilize their tense relations.

And the US State Department announced, in a notification to Congress, that it sold ammunition for 30 mm cannons to Taiwan for $332.2 million, and spare parts for weapons and military machinery for $108 million.

The State Department said the sales would help Taiwan “maintain a credible defense capability” but “would not alter the basic military balance in the region”.

The US Congress has the right to reject this arms sale, but a similar possibility is unlikely, at a time when most parliamentarians are pressing the United States to increase its military support for Taiwan in the face of China. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken made a rare visit to Beijing in mid-June, during which the two sides stuck to their positions regarding Taiwan, but at the same time hoped to maintain communication to prevent tensions from turning into an armed confrontation.