Trump’s Massive Taiwan Arms Deal Sparks China’s Retaliation Against Boeing and Defense Giants

China has imposed sweeping sanctions on major American defense contractors following President Donald Trump’s approval of a historic $10 billion arms sale to Taiwan. The Chinese foreign ministry announced measures targeting 10 individuals and 20 US companies, including aerospace giant Boeing, marking Beijing’s strongest response yet to Washington’s military support for the island democracy.
The sanctions package freezes any assets these companies and individuals maintain within Chinese territory and prohibits all domestic organizations and citizens from conducting business with them. Boeing’s fighter jet production facility in St Louis, Missouri, where over 3,000 union workers recently staged strikes over wage disputes, now faces complete exclusion from the Chinese market. The facility serves as a critical manufacturing hub for the company’s military aircraft operations.
The punitive measures came in direct response to last week’s announcement by the Trump administration of the largest weapons package in the history of US-Taiwan relations. The deal exceeds $10 billion in value and includes sophisticated medium-range missiles and advanced drone systems. Among the eight separate agreements comprising the sale are 420 Army Tactical Missile Systems, technology similar to what the Biden administration previously supplied to Ukraine for its defense against Russian forces.
Other prominent defense contractors caught in Beijing’s crosshairs include Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation and L3Harris Maritime Services. The sanctions also target high-profile individuals, including the founder of Anduril Industries and nine senior executives from the affected companies, who are now barred from entering Chinese territory. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson emphasized that Taiwan represents the most sensitive issue in bilateral relations, calling it “the core of China’s core interests and the first red line that cannot be crossed.”
The US State Department defended the arms sales as essential to American national, economic, and security interests. Officials stated the agreements support Taiwan’s efforts to modernize its military and maintain credible defensive capabilities. The US remains legally obligated to provide Taiwan with self-defense means, though such sales consistently strain relations with Beijing, which insists Taiwan must reunify with the mainland—a prospect the democratically governed island firmly rejects.