China Sanctions Lockheed, Raytheon Over Arms Sales

China has imposed sanctions on two US defense companies over arms sales to Taiwan, a day after Beijing vowed to take “countermeasures” in response to the US handling of a Chinese spy balloon that entered US airspace late last month, Wayne Chang and Simone McCarthy reported for CNN.

Photo Insert: Beijing has previously imposed sanctions on both companies in relation to their arms sales to Taiwan.

Lockheed Martin Corp. and Raytheon (RTN) Missiles & Defense, a subsidiary of Raytheon (RTN) Technologies Corp, will be added to China’s sanctions list, its Ministry of Commerce said in a Thursday statement.

They are banned from importing, exporting and investing in China.

Both companies are also subject to fines “twice the amount” of their arms sales to Taiwan dating back to September 2020, and their senior executives will be prohibited from entering and working in China.

It was not clear how Beijing would enforce the fines. While the US prohibits the sale of weapons to China, some US defense contractors have ties to civilian sectors.

Beijing had previously imposed sanctions on both companies in relation to their arms sales to Taiwan, without specifying what the penalties would entail and how they would be enforced. China’s ruling Communist Party views democratic Taiwan as its territory, despite never having controlled it.

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