China has halted nuclear arms control talks with the United States over Washington's support for Taiwan, Beijing said on Wednesday.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said that repeated US arms sales to Taiwan in recent months had "seriously compromised the political atmosphere for continuing the arms-control consultations."

Taiwan is ruled by its own democratically-elected government, but Beijing considers the island part of its territory.

"Consequently, the Chinese side has decided to hold off discussion with the US on a new round of consultations on arms control and non-proliferation. The responsibility fully lies with the US," a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said.

What did the US say?

US President Joe Biden's administration advocates for a policy of "compartmentalization" where nuclear non-proliferation is separated from other Sino-American issues.

The US State Department called China's move "unfortunate" on Wednesday.

"China has chosen to follow Russia's lead in asserting that engagement on arms control can't proceed when there are other challenges in the bilateral relationship," a spokesperson said.

"We think this approach undermines strategic stability. It increases the risk of arms race dynamics," the spokesperson added.

zc/rm (AFP, Reuters)