China has announced that it will blacklist seven Taiwanese officials who are said to support independence for the autonomous island.
A Chinese news agency, citing a spokesman for the ruling Communist Party’s Taiwan Work Office, said the group would be barred from entering mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau regions and restricted from working with Chinese officials.
The Agency also said the “punitive measures” were necessary to “ensure the peaceful development of cross-strait relations and the immediate interests of people on both sides”.
Beijing claims Taiwan and does not rule out the possibility of using force to seize the territory.
Under sanctions, Taiwan’s foreign ministry said the island was a democracy and that China cannot interfere.
“Furthermore, we cannot accept threats or threats from an authoritarian and totalitarian system,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Joanne Ou told reporters in Taipei.
Beijing has stepped up pressure on the island since U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the island earlier this month, holding a multi-day war game on the island and colluding with the U.S. on many areas, including the climate. The military continued its drills on Monday when a group of US lawmakers were scheduled to visit Taipei and meet Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen.
While maintaining diplomatic relations with Beijing, the United States is Taiwan’s biggest supporter and has a legal obligation to provide Taiwan with means of self-defense.
Taiwan says the 23 million inhabitants of the island should decide their future. Taiwanese officials do not travel to the mainland, so sanctions are unlikely to have a significant impact.
