China Sanctions Taiwanese Ambassador To The US

Illustration (Photo; Doc. Unsplash)

JAKARTA - China on Friday imposed sanctions on Taiwanese Ambassador to the United States thanks Bi-khim and two American institutions hosting Taiwanese leader Tsai Ing-wen during a layover in the US as part of a trip to Central America.

The move came after Tsai met with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday in California which angered Beijing for assuming Taiwan belongs to him.

A spokesman for Taiwan's branch Communist Party called Taiwan's independence separatists persistent and banned him and his family members from entering mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau.

The sanctions were also applied to financial sponsorshipas and related businesses prohibited from cooperating with any organizations and individuals in mainland China.

Beijing is also taking countermeasures against the Hudson Institute think tank, and Ronald Reagan Presidential Library which is Tsai and McCarthy's meeting place. They are prohibited from interacting with individuals and organizations in China.

The Hudson Institute last week held a closed event attended by Tsai in New York.

China's Foreign Ministry is also targeting senior officials within the two agencies, freezing their property in China, barring them from interacting with Chinese organizations and individuals, and halting visa issuance for them.

The Taiwan Affairs Office at China's State Council on Friday also announced penalties for a Taiwanese think tank and a regional organization for advocated for island independence and barred their leaders from entering mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau, the Xinhua News Agency said.

China, which considers Taiwan a rebel province, warned of countermeasures before Tsai spoke with the US's third-highest country official.

Tsai told reporters accompanying him in the US on Thursday that he used to meet American side by side when he stopped.

He also believes the face-to-face meeting with the US will "help the stability of cross-sate relations and regional peace".

Tsai called on Beijing to "confine ourselves and not overreact."

China and Taiwan have had their own governments since they broke out in 1949 due to civil war.