China says U.S. arms sales to Taiwan 'speeding up threat of war'

China criticised the latest U.S. weapons deal with Taiwan on Thursday, saying the sale was "speeding up" the threat of war in the Taiwan Strait.

Last week, the United States announced $11.1 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, the biggest-ever U.S. weapons package for the democratically governed island, whose government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims.

The United States should stop all "provocations" and correct its "wrong actions", Zhang Xiaogang, spokesperson at the Chinese defence ministry, said at a regular news conference.

-Eduardo Baptista/Reuters