$1.8 billion arms sale to Taiwan
China threatens retaliation
US tightens rules on more Chinese media outlets
China threatened yesterday to retaliate against the latest US arms sale to Chinese-claimed Taiwan, as the island welcomed the weapons package but said it was not looking to get into an arms race with Beijing.
The Trump administration has ramped up support for Taiwan through arms sales, adding to tensions between Beijing and Washington, already heightened by rows over the South China Sea, Hong Kong, human rights and trade.
Responding the US approval of a potential $1.8 billion arms sale to Taiwan, China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said during a daily news briefing that such sales "seriously damage China's sovereignty."
The latest US arms package includes sensors, missiles and artillery, and further congressional notifications are expected for drones made by General Atomics and land-based Harpoon anti-ship missiles, made by Boeing Co, to serve as coastal defence cruise missiles.
In another development, the US has tightened rules on six more Chinese media organizations, saying that they are propaganda outlets that answer to the state.
The fresh move against Chinese media was met with anger in Beijing, which said it would take "necessary" countermeasures, without specifying which US outlets it might target inside its territory.
It was the third round of US designations of Chinese outlets as "foreign missions," which requires them to report details on their US-based staff and real estate transactions to the State Department. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told a news conference Wednesday that the affected outlets will face no restrictions on their reporting.
The six organizations newly designated as foreign missions are Yicai Global, Jiefang Daily, Xinmin Evening News, Social Sciences in China Press, Beijing Review and Economic Daily. The State Department earlier enforced rules on nine better-known outlets including the Xinhua news agency and China Global Television Network.
China has denounced the regulations and retaliated by expelling US citizens who work for major news organizations including The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal.