China urges U.S. to honor agreements on Taiwan, stop arms sales

BEIJING, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson urged the United States to abide by the provisions of the three China-U.S. joint communiques, sever military links with Taiwan and stop arms sales to the island.

There is only one China in the world, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory, said spokesperson Hua Chunying at a daily press briefing on Tuesday, which marks the 39th anniversary of the issuance of the August 17 Communique.

Citing relevant U.S. commitments made in the August 17 Communique concerning arms sales to Taiwan, Hua said the three China-U.S. joint communiques constitute the political foundation of bilateral relations, the essential core of which is the one-China principle, which the U.S. side should strictly follow.

Hua said that, in fact, the United States has conducted "official" exchanges with Taiwan and sold various kinds of weapons to the island in constant breach of its own promises, to help Taiwan expand the so-called international space. She cited multiple batches of arms sales to Taiwan by U.S. administrations, including a plan recently announced by the Biden administration to sell weaponry to Taiwan worth around 750 million U.S. dollars.

"We'd like to try our best to strive for the prospect of peaceful reunification with utmost sincerity, and at the same time, will reserve the option of taking all necessary countermeasures against foreign intervention, as well as a few 'Taiwan independence' secessionists and their activities," said Hua.

No one should underestimate the firm determination, strong will and powerful capabilities of the Chinese people in defending national sovereignty and territorial integrity, she said. No matter how many weapons the United States provides to Taiwan, there is no possibility it will change the general trend of cross-Strait relations, and still less that it will impede China's reunification process, added Hua.

The spokesperson urged the United States to clearly recognize the highly sensitive and harmful nature of the issue of arms sales to Taiwan, abide by the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiques with concrete actions, stop official exchanges and military links with the island, cease arms sales to Taiwan, to avoid doing further damage to China-U.S. relations and peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.