China has named Li Shangfu, an aerospace expert who was sanctioned by the US State Department in 2018, as its new defence minister replacing outgoing defence chief Wei Fenghe.
Li Shangfu was sanctioned for purchasing weapons, including 10 Su-35 combat aircraft and equipment related to the S-400 surface-to-air missile system from Russia.
His appointment comes amid strained US-China ties, with the country's foreign minister Qin Gang recently warning of potential conflict unless the US changes its course.
China has appointed Li Shangfu, an aerospace expert and US-sanctioned general, as its new defence minister.
Li Shangfu was voted unanimously by the country's rubber-stamp parliament, the National People's Congress, to replace outgoing defence chief Wei Fenghe.
US had sanctioned him in 2018 after he was found purchasing Russian weapons violating U.S. policy on arms control.
His appointment comes amid already-strained US-China relations, with Qin Gang, the Chinese foreign minister, warning of potential conflict unless the US changes course.
"The US should abandon its willful misrepresentation, defamation and ideological bias of China," Qin said, adding that "otherwise, there will surely be a conflict between the United States and China, and that would be a disaster for both countries and the world.".
Li's appointment is part of a major cabinet reshuffle by Xi Jinping, who was formally given an unprecedented third term as president.
The reshuffle comes as China emerges as a global superpower and looking to increase its weight in the international community.
Meanwhile, the US-China conflict remained a priority for Joe Biden's government and he sustained the US's position on the issue of Taiwan.
"The United States will not leave Australia alone on the field of economic coercion from China," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in response to the country's latest trade ban on Australia.
Different sources have different interpretations of what this appointment may mean.
Reuters writes that it could imply China's desire to project military power and test Washington's response especially after Biden's call for strengthening the US military presence in the Indo-Pacific region.
Meanwhile, the Independent reports that Washington cut off military deals with China when Mr. Li was sanctioned and that his appointment "…could spell more difficulties for already strained US-China ties."