 "Representational image. Reuters File")
China said Wednesday it would impose sanctions on several US defence firms and several executives over Washington’s “economic coercion” against Chinese companies and its sales of arms to Taiwan.
“The US… has indiscriminately imposed unlawful and unilateral sanctions against a number of Chinese entities… while (it) continues to sell arms to the Taiwan region,” Beijing’s foreign ministry said in a statement announcing the “countermeasures”.
China said that, in retaliation for the US arming Taiwan and imposing restrictions on Chinese businesses, it has taken action against 12 US military-industrial complex corporations and their senior leaders.
According to China’s Foreign Ministry, the US corporations included divisions of General Dynamics, Raytheon, and Lockheed Martin.
It further stated that the sanctions, which include preventing top executives from visiting China and freezing assets there, went into force on Wednesday.
According to a statement from the ministry, the move came after the US “indiscriminately imposing unlawful unilateral sanctions on several Chinese entities based on so-called Russia-related factors.”
China said that the US had “engaged in unilateral bullying and economic coercion” and had “ignored its objective and impartial position in the Ukrainian crisis”.
According to the ministry, the US has persisted in arming Taiwan, which “seriously undermines” China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and “violates” the one-China principle and joint communiqués between the two nations.