China slaps sanctions on US firms in response to Taiwan arms deal

China has announced new sanctions against the United States in response to the supply of arms to Taiwan, targeting three American companies and ten U.S. citizens.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a statement condemning the recent U.S. commitment to provide significant military assistance to Taiwan, describing it as a provocative action, Caliber.Az reports via Russian media.

The sanctions will affect three military-industrial firms: Edge Autonomy Operations LLC, Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc., and Skydio Inc. Among the individuals sanctioned are prominent figures, including Steven Roger Rudder, founder of Stick Rudder Enterprises LLC; James William Ickes II, vice president of Sierra Nevada Corporation; and David Keith Sutton, director of Lockheed Martin’s Asia region. Additional targets include Young-Tae Park, vice president of AeroVironment; Patrick Edward Jankowski, former CEO of Edge Autonomy Operations; John Purvis, COO of Edge Autonomy Operations; and Josh Brungardt, president and CEO of Huntington Ingalls Industries. Christopher Douglas Kastner, co-founder and CEO of Skydio, Adam Bry, and Tom Moss, who heads Skydio’s Asia-Pacific business unit, are also included.

As a result of the sanctions, the movable and immovable assets of the listed companies and individuals will be frozen within China. Chinese entities and citizens are prohibited from engaging in business transactions with them, and all ten sanctioned individuals will be barred from obtaining visas to China, including for the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau.

Taiwan has maintained its own government since 1949, when the Kuomintang forces, led by Chiang Kai-shek, retreated to the island after their defeat in China’s civil war. While Taiwan operates independently, Beijing regards it as a province of the People's Republic of China.

By Tamilla Hasanova