US slammed for 'stopover' of Lai, arms sales to Taiwan

China has strongly condemned the United States for arranging Taiwan region leader Lai Ching-te's "stopover" in the country, urging Washington to stop official interaction with the island.

It was reported that Lai arrived in Hawaii on Saturday for a "stopover" in the US as part of his trip to so-called "diplomatic allies" in the Pacific.

China will closely follow the developments and take resolute and strong measures to defend its national sovereignty and territorial integrity, the Foreign Ministry said on Sunday in an online statement.

"China firmly opposes any trip by a leader of the Taiwan authorities to the US in any name or under whatever pretext," a spokesperson said in the statement, adding that China has lodged serious protests over the US arrangement.

China also firmly opposes any form of US connivance or support for "Taiwan independence" separatists and their separatist activities, the statement said, emphasizing that the Taiwan question is at the core of China's core interests, and is the first red line that cannot be crossed in Sino-US relations.

The spokesperson urged the US to fully see the separatist nature of Lai and the Democratic Progressive Party authorities and fully understand the grave damage that "Taiwan independence" separatist activities do to cross-Strait peace and stability.

Beijing urges Washington to fully abide by the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques, and act on the commitments made by US leaders of not supporting "Taiwan independence", the spokesperson said.

The US should stop sending any wrong signal to "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, the spokesperson added.

Chen Binhua, a spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said on Sunday that no matter what gimmick Lai uses to seek "independence", it will not shake the international community's firm adherence to the one-China principle or obstruct the historical trend of national reunification.

A day before Lai's arrival in Hawaii, the US Department of Defense said that the US Department of State approved the potential sale of spare parts for F-16 jets and radars to Taiwan for an estimated $385 million.

China is dissatisfied with and opposes the US' potential arms sales to Taiwan, and will take strong and resolute countermeasures to defend its national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity, the Foreign Ministry said on Sunday in another online statement.

Beijing has lodged serious protests with Washington, calling on the US to immediately stop arming the island and stop abetting and supporting "Taiwan independence" separatist forces in seeking "independence" by building up its military, the statement said.

The US arms sales to Taiwan seriously violate the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques, especially the August 17 Communique of 1982, a spokesperson said in the statement. The arms sales also violate China's sovereignty and security interests, the spokesperson said.

The sales are a severe breach of international law, send a gravely wrong signal to "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, and are detrimental to China-US relations as well as peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, the spokesperson said.

The decision to sell arms to Taiwan is inconsistent with US leaders' commitment of not supporting "Taiwan independence", according to the statement.

Chen, from the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, warned Taiwan authorities that buying weapons would not bring security, and paying "protection fees" to the US would not ensure "Taiwan independence".

Soliciting US support for "Taiwan independence" is doomed to fail, and any attempt to seek "independence" through military means will only push Taiwan to the brink of war, he added.

According to reports, this is the 18th time that the administration of US President Joe Biden has approved arms sales to Taiwan. In October, the US announced a potential $2 billion arms package to the region.