Taiwan downplays impact of Chinese sanctions on European arms makers

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TAIPEI: Taiwan's defence minister on Monday (Apr 27) downplayed the impact of Chinese sanctions on seven European companies over arms sales to the island, saying it was not the first time China had taken such action and it would not affect Taipei's ability to source weapons.

China's Commerce Ministry on Friday banned exports of dual-use items to the seven companies over arms sales to Taiwan, placing them on its export control list, in a rare case of Europe-targeted, Taiwan-related sanctions.

Taiwan, which China views as its own territory, gets most of its weapons from the United States. Europe has not sold any big-ticket items like fighter jets to Taipei for around three decades, fearful of raising the ire of Beijing.

Taking lawmaker questions at parliament, Taiwan Defence Minister Wellington Koo said it was not the first time China had implemented such blacklist measures.

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"However, I think such an action, as I understand it, does not affect our ability to continue sourcing goods through relevant diversified channels," he added, without elaborating.

While many countries, especially in Europe, are nervous about any defence cooperation with Taiwan due to fears of Chinese retaliation, Taipei has found an increasingly sympathetic ear in parts of Central and Eastern Europe, especially since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Four of the seven companies on the new Chinese list are Czech.

China has repeatedly sanctioned major US arms makers over sales to Taiwan, most recently in December following the US announcement of a US$11 billion weapons sale package to the island.

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