China threatens sanctions after $8 bn US deal to sell F-16 jets to Taiwan

The US State Department on Tuesday approved the sale of 66 Lockheed Martin-built fighters, the F-16C/D Block 70, in an $8 billion deal, to Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory.

China on Wednesday blasted a planned US arms shipment to self-ruled Taiwan and threatened to sanction US firms involved in the sale of F-16 fighter jets.

File photo of F-16 fighter jets. (Reuters photo)

“China will take all necessary measures to safeguard our interests including imposing sanctions on the US companies participating in this arms sale to Taiwan,” foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a news briefing.

The US State Department on Tuesday approved the sale of 66 Lockheed Martin-built fighters, the F-16 C/D Block 70, in an $8 billion deal, to Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory.

(The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text, only the headline has been changed.)