China's government says it intends to impose sanctions on the chief executives of Raytheon and Boeing Defense, citing their involvement in Washington lawmakers' latest approval of arms sales to Taiwan, Reuters reported.
According to the publicationBreaking Defense, Beijing said the weapons transfers included a possible $1.1 billion agreement that "gravely" undermines "China's sovereignty and security interests."
A Chinese government spokesperson said the country's government would be levying sanctions on Raytheon Technologies CEO Gregory Hayes along with Boeing Defense, Space and Security CEO Ted Colbert, accusing both of being "involved" in the agreements with self-governing Taiwan.
The spokesperson said the deals "severely harm China-US relations and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.” They said, “China firmly opposes and strongly condemns the sales.”
This month the Biden administration approved several potential arms sales through the Defense Security Cooperation Agency that included over $665 million in advanced radar-related technology made mainly by Raytheon, as well as over $350 million in Harpoon missiles and other equipment that Boeing made, Breaking Defense reported.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said, “We once again urge the U.S. government and relevant parties to ... stop arms sales to Taiwan and military contact with Taiwan, and stop creating new factors that could lead to tensions in the Taiwan Strait,” theAssociated Press reported.
According to the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), Taiwan has governed itself independently of China since 1949. Beijing, though, sees the island as part of Chinese territory. The ruling Chinese government has said it vows to eventually "unify" Taiwan with mainland China, even if that means using force.