China: U.S. Arms Sales to Taiwan Harm National Interest

By Gideon Swift | Published: February 1, 2010

China’s foreign minister warned that U.S. plans to sell $6.4 billion of arms to Taiwan will harm Chinese efforts to unify peacefully with the island, the ministry said Sunday, after China suspended U.S. military exchanges and threatened unprecedented sanctions against American defense companies.

Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said the planned weapons sales to self-governing Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its territory, were a “crude interference in China’s internal affairs” and would hurt its national security.

Beijing’s strong response to Friday’s U.S. announcement of the weapons sales, while not entirely unexpected, was swift and indicated that it plans to put up a greater challenge than usual as it deals with the most sensitive topic in U.S.-China relations.

“This is the strongest reaction we’ve seen so far in recent years,” said Stephanie T. Kleine-Ahlbrandt, northeast Asia project director for the International Crisis Group. “China is really looking to see what kind of reaction it’s going to receive” from President Barack Obama, she said.

China’s Defense Ministry said the arms sales would cause “severe harm” to overall U.S.-China cooperation. Vice ministerial-level talks on arms control and strategic security were postponed.

Defense Ministry spokesman Huang Xueping said the Chinese military would fight any move to hurt the country’s sovereignty.

“We will never give in or compromise in this issue,” Huang said in a statement.