Beijing urges US to ‘immediately cancel’ arms sale to Taiwan

China urged Washington on Tuesday to “immediately cancel” the potential sale of $2.2 billion in weapons to Taiwan, including battle tanks and anti-aircraft missiles, AFP reports.

“The sale of weapons by the United States to Taiwan… seriously violates the one-China principle… grossly interferes in China’s internal affairs and undermines China’s sovereignty and security interests,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said.

The US State Department has approved the possible sale to Taiwan of M1A2T Abrams tanks, Stinger missiles and related equipment with an estimated value of $2.2 billion, the Pentagon said on Monday, despite Chinese criticism of the deal.