The arms sales are "obviously a violation of the code of conduct between nations," Yang Jiechi said.

"We approached the US side and made a representation very seriously, on many occasions, yet the US still went ahead with the sale."

"Of course the Chinese government and the people have to react. It is within its sovereign right to do what is necessary... I think the Chinese people and the government of every region should feel indignant about this thing."

Under a deal that has rattled China-US ties, the Pentagon last month unveiled a 6.4-billion-dollar arms package for Taiwan, which Beijing sees as a part of its territory.

Yang said that in an agreement signed between Washington and Beijing in 1982, known as the August 17 communique, the United States had pledged to reduce its arms sales to Taiwan.

"I do hope that the United States will change its behaviour on arms sales and will abide by the August 17 communique and will stop arms sales to Taiwan," he said.

The spat is one of several issues to have contributed to a worsening of relations in recent weeks, together with the upcoming White House visit by the Dalai Lama and cyber attacks on US firms such as Google.

Yang's comments came on the first day of the Munich Security Conference in Germany, a 46-year-old gathering dubbed the "Davos of security policy" after the World Economic Forum held last month at the Swiss ski resort.

The forum brings together some 300 top military, diplomatic and political figures, traditionally from members of the NATO military alliance but increasingly from further afield. It was Yang's first visit.

The minister also used his keynote speech to address another of the many foreign policy headaches facing US President Barack Obama after a year in office: Iran's nuclear programme.

Amid pressure from the US, France, Britain and Germany for more sanctions, Yang said that China was sticking to its position that a "mutually acceptable" solution to the spat could "somehow" be found.

"This issue has entered a crucial stage. The parties concerned should, with their overall long-term interests in mind, step up diplomatic efforts, stay patient and adopt a more flexible, pragmatic and proactive policy," he said.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad this week raised hopes of progress in the international stand-off over its nuclear activities by indicating that he might be ready to accept an offer to send some uranium abroad for enrichment.

Doing so would help soothe concerns that Iran wanted to arm itself with nuclear weapons, but Washington called on Tehran to make a concrete offer to the UN atomic agency, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Manouchehr Mottaki, a surprise visitor to Munich, was due to give more details at a late-night session on Friday, as well as to hold talks with Sergei Lavrov, Russian foreign minister.

"It is important for both sides to take confidence-building measures," Mottaki told the German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung. "We have the feeling that this is happening right now."

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