Senior Colonel Zhang Xiaogang, spokesperson for China’s Ministry of National Defense, answers media queries at the ministry in Beijing, China, on Jan 12, 2024. (PHOTO / MINISTRY OF NATIONAL DEFENSE, CHINA)

BEIJING – China’s defense ministry on Friday urged the United States to stop selling arms to the Taiwan region and arming it with weapons in any other form, and to cut military contact with the island.

Responding to a media query about the US Department of State's approval of the sale of a 75-million-dollar advanced tactical data link system to Taiwan, Zhang Xiaogang, a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, stressed that China's opposition to US arms sales to the Taiwan region has been firm and clear.

The US has been manipulating issues related to Taiwan and attempting to encourage "Taiwan independence" separatist forces through arms sales and military aid, severely undermining China's sovereignty and security interests, and damaging relations between the Chinese and US militaries, he said.

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He stressed that the Taiwan question is the very first red line in China-US relations and that this line must not be crossed, stressing that arming Taiwan with weapons is a "dangerous bid" from the US.

The spokesperson urged Washington to abide earnestly by the one-China principle and the stipulations of the three China-US joint communiques, particularly the communique of Aug 17, 1982.

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The US should cease its provocative acts aimed at containing China with Taiwan, and make concrete contributions to China-US relations, as well as regional peace and stability, Zhang said.

China will take resolute and forceful measures to safeguard its national sovereignty and territorial integrity, he added.