China sanctions Lockheed Martin, Raytheon over weapons sales to Taiwan

Beijing — China on Thursday imposed trade and investment sanctions on Lockheed Martin and a unit of Raytheon for supplying weapons to Taiwan, stepping up efforts to isolate the island democracy claimed by the ruling Communist Party as part of its territory.

Lockheed Martin Corp. and Raytheon Technologies Corp.'s Raytheon Missiles and Defense are barred from importing goods into China or making new investments in the country, the Ministry of Commerce announced. It said they were added to the "unreliable entity" list of companies whose activities are restricted because they might endanger national sovereignty, security or development interests.

It wasn't clear what impact the penalties might have. The United States bars most sales of weapons-related technology to China, but some military contractors also have civilian businesses in aerospace and other markets.