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READ MORE <\/strong> Superpowers US and China on brink of meltdown \u2013 and UK will be next to crash[LATEST] <\/strong><\/p>\n Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang said on Friday that China opposed the arms sale, branding it a \u201cgross interference\u201d in China\u2019s internal affairs.<\/p>\n He labelled it a \u201cheinous act\u201d that violates its \u201cOne China\u201d principle.<\/p>\n It comes after the US announced a package of military aid worth an estimated \u00a3275million for Taiwan earlier this month.<\/p>\n The package was in addition to nearly \u00a315 billion in military sales of F-16s and other major weapons systems that the US has approved for Taiwan.<\/p>\n The White House has been bolstering its level of assistance for Taiwan amid China\u2019s repeated threats.<\/p>\n DON’T MISS: <\/strong> We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info<\/p>\n It has come under intense pressure from Congress members to support the self-governed island nation with additional weapons in the hope that Beijing would consider the price of invading the territory across the Taiwan Strait too high.<\/p>\n Former Defense Intelligence Agency officer Matt Shoemaker told Daily Express US the chances new military packages will repel an invasion are low.<\/p>\n Instead, he said they indicate that \u201cwhat this means regarding the fears of American and Chinese conflict over Taiwan is that the threat for conflict is still there.\u201d<\/p>\n China has repeatedly warned it is willing to invade Taiwan, the self-governed island nation Beijing claims sovereignty over.<\/p>\n In recent years, it has stepped up the number of military planes sent toward the island in symbolic warnings.<\/p>\n The island split from Beijing in 1949 following a bloody civil war, but President Xi Jinping says his country is still the rightful owner according to the \u201cOne China\u201d principle.<\/p>\n The US has warned that it will step in to defend the island if China does make an attempt to take the territory by force.<\/p>\n Beijing has also ramped up military drills around the island in furious reaction to Taiwan\u2019s political activities.<\/p>\n According to top US Air Force general Michael A. Minihan, a war could break out with China in as little as two years.<\/p>\n He said such a scenario could play out by 2025, a memo leaked by one of its recipients in January revealed.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/78\/590x\/secondary\/china-taiwan-4929507.jpg?r=1693123621651\")
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