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Arms sale decision slapped
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CHINA expressed "serious concern" yesterday over reports that the United States has decided to sell advanced weapons to Taiwan.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue told a routine news briefing yesterday afternoon that the Chinese Government has made a strong representation to the US on this issue.
China opposes, always, to arms sales to Taiwan by the United States, and holds that arms sale to Taiwan will seriously damage Sino-US relations.
Zhang urged the United States to abide by the three China-US communiqués so as to avoid causing further damages to the Sino-US relations.
News reports that US President George W Bush decided on Monday to take the advice of Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Colin Powell and forgo sales of missile destroyers with advanced Aegis systems to Taiwan.
But Bush will endorse the sale of less sophisticated items, including four Kidd-class destroyers ready by 2003, 12 P-3C Orion aircraft, eight diesel submarines designed to counter blockades and invasions, Avenger surface-to-air missile system and submarine-launched and surface-launched torpedoes.
Reports say this will be one of the biggest packages of arms sales to Taiwan by the United States.(SD-Agencies)
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