China expressed, today, Monday (11/17/2025), its “firm opposition” to the United States’ recent approval to sell spare parts and repairs for Taiwanese military aircraft for about $330 million, which is the first such operation since Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Zhang Xiaogang indicated that, in Beijing’s opinion, the operation violates the “one China” principle and the joint statements signed by the two countries, describing it as interference in its internal affairs.
Zhang warned that China had sent a “formal protest” to Washington, and that it would take “all necessary measures” to protect its sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He also urged the United States to “immediately stop” what he called the “wrong practice” of arming Taiwan to avoid further impact on bilateral relations and military relations between the two powers.
The spokesman added that any attempt to support Taiwanese “separatism” by military means “will only bring trouble” to those promoting it, and warned Taipei authorities, which he accused of “wasting the people’s money” on arms purchases, that “relying on external forces or resisting reunification by armed means is doomed to failure.”
The deal, approved by Washington last week, includes components for the F-16, C-130 and a domestically manufactured IDF fighter jet, according to the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency.
Regional frictions
Taiwan insists that these supplies will enhance the preparation of its air force and its ability to respond to Chinese incursions into the so-called “gray zone.”
The authorities in Beijing consider Taiwan an “integral part” of Chinese territory and have not ruled out the use of force to achieve the “reunification” of the island and the continent, which is one of the long-term goals set by Xi after coming to power in 2012.
For more than seven decades, the United States has been at the center of disagreements between the two parties, as Washington is the main arms supplier to Taipei, and although it does not maintain diplomatic relations with the island, it can defend it in the event of a conflict with Beijing.
This situation has led to constant friction between the United States and China, whose government has identified the “Taiwan issue” as a “red line” in relations between the two powers.
The announcement of the Chinese protest coincides with a week that witnessed other regional frictions, especially between China and Japan, after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaishi indicated that the attack on Taiwan may constitute a situation that justifies the intervention of the Self-Defense Forces.
Beijing strongly criticized these statements, while official Chinese media described them as “dangerous” and contradictory to the post-war system.
mg (efe, china daily)
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