China’s Foreign Ministry announced on 26 December that it had imposed sanctions on 10 individuals and 20 US defence companies in response to a US arms sale to Taiwan valued at about $11 billion. The measures include freezing the companies’ assets within China and prohibiting Chinese individuals and organisations from conducting business with them. The ministry said the sanctions also bar senior executives of the affected companies from entering China.

Among the companies named were Anduril Defense Industries, Northrop Grumman Systems, L3 Harris Marine Services, and Boeing’s St. Louis branch. The announcement followed Washington’s approval of a proposed $11.1 billion arms package for Taiwan, which would become the largest US arms deal with the island if cleared by Congress. Chinese officials stated that the Taiwan issue concerns China’s core interests and warned that actions they view as crossing established red lines would prompt a response.

Beijing maintains that Taiwan is part of China and has not ruled out the use of force to achieve unification, while Taiwan’s government maintains that the island is self-governing. The United States adheres to a One China policy but continues to supply Taiwan with defensive weapons under the Taiwan Relations Act. Chinese authorities said the People’s Liberation Army would step up military training and readiness following the arms deal, which includes systems such as HIMARS produced by Lockheed Martin. Taiwan has been governed separately from mainland China since 1949, when Nationalist forces retreated to the island after losing the civil war to the Chinese Communist Party.