China to sanction US firms over arms sales to Taiwan

China will impose unspecified sanctions on Boeing Co.’s defense unit, Lockheed Martin Corp. and Raytheon Technologies Corp. after the US State Department approved $1.8 billion in arms sales to Taiwan last week.

The sanctions will be imposed “in order to uphold national interests,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters Monday in Beijing. Boeing Defense would be among those sanctioned, he said.

The action follows the State Department’s approval last week of $1.8 billion in new weapons for Taiwan and submission of the package to Congress for a final review. The new arms sale, and an earlier one involving Lockheed F-16 fighters, have taken place amid rising tension between the superpowers ahead of the U.S. election next week.