Beijing views any official exchanges between foreign governments and Taiwan as a violation of its sovereignty claims over the island…reports Asian Lite News
China has imposed sanctions on two American organisations that hosted Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen during her recent visit to the US, a day after President Xi Jinping stated that Beijing won’t “compromise” on its position on the self-ruled island.
Tsai’s meeting with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, which took place on Thursday, marked the first time a Taiwan president had met a US Speaker on American soil.
Beijing views any official exchanges between foreign governments and Taiwan as a violation of its sovereignty claims over the island.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the Washington-based think tank Hudson Institute and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California would be prohibited from cooperating, exchanging, or transacting with institutions and individuals in China.
The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley was the site where Tsai met McCarthy and a bipartisan group of congressional leaders, marking the second high-profile meeting between an American official and Taiwan’s president.
In addition to these organisations, China also sanctioned two Asia-based groups, The Prospect Foundation and the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats, for promoting Taiwan’s independence.
Meanwhile, China has took punitive measures against “Prospect Foundation” and “Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats” for advocating “Taiwan independence,” reported Bangkok Post.
The two Taiwan organisations have been prohibited from forging any cooperation with mainland organizations and individuals. Their heads have been banned from entering the mainland and the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao, reported Bangkok Post.
Acting on instructions of the Democratic Progressive Party authorities, the two organizations, under the pretext of “democracy,” “freedom” and “cooperation,” and under the guise of “academic exchanges” and “seminars,” have wantonly peddled the idea of “Taiwan independence” in the international arena, said Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for the office.
They have gone all out to ingratiate themselves with anti-China forces, and have engaged in incidents that promoted “one China, one Taiwan,” “two Chinas,” and other violations of the one-China principle, in an attempt to expand the so-called “international space” of Taiwan, Zhu added.
Meanwhile, China on Friday announced fresh sanctions against Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to the United States, and punitive steps on two American institutes that hosted the island’s leader Tsai Ing-wen during her US stopovers.