China threatens retaliation over US-Taiwan arms sale

Beijing: China on Thursday threatened to make a "legitimate and necessary" retaliation over the US sale of $1 billion worth of missiles to Taiwan as Beijing becomes increasingly strident over its claims to the self-ruled island.

The US State Department said on Wednesday it had approved the sale of 135 air-to-ground missiles to Taiwan in a move Taipei’s defence ministry said would build its combat capabilities. Democratic and self-ruled Taiwan lives under constant threat of invasion by authoritarian China, whose leaders view the island as part of their territory.

They have vowed to one day seize the island, by force if necessary. China’s foreign ministry on Thursday accused the United States of violating agreements signed by Beijing and Washington in the 1970s establishing diplomatic relations between the two governments. The sale is "sending a very wrong signal to separatist forces advocating for Taiwan independence, and seriously damages China-US relations," ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said at a regular press briefing. Zhao said China would "make a legitimate and necessary response depending how the situation evolves."