China is firmly opposed to the United States' plan of selling Maverick missiles to Taiwan, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said at a press conference Thursday.

Spokesman Zhu Bangzao made the remark when asked to comment on the statement by the US Department of Defense on September 5 that the United States may sell 40 Maverick missiles to Taiwan to arm its F-16 fighter jets.

Zhu said that China is seriously concerned about this. Such an act by the United States would send a wrong signal to the Taiwan authorities and constitute a gross interference in China's internal affairs. China is firmly opposed to this, he said.

Zhu said that the three Sino-US Joint Communiques are the basis for Sino-US relations, and US arms sales to Taiwan will once again violate the three joint communiques, especially the one issued on August 17, 1982, and the relevant commitments the US side has made.

China demands the United States realize the harm of arms sales to Taiwan, adhere to the "one China" policy, the three Sino-US Joint Communiques and relevant commitments, stop arms sales to Taiwan so as to avoid harming the cross-straits relations and Sino-US relations, Zhu said.

Zhu said that US arms sales to Taiwan would be an encouragement to the island's forces for "independence," will certainly have a negative impact on the stability of the Taiwan Straits. It is not in the interests of the development of the cross-straits situation, the Sino-US relations and not in the interests of the United States, the spokesman said.