China imposes unspecified sanctions on US Speaker Nancy Pelosi after ‘provocative’ Taiwan visit

China, on Friday, imposed unspecified sanctions on Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi “and her immediate family members”, the Foreign Ministry in Beijing said. The sanctions were imposed in response to Pelosi’s controversial Taiwan visit.

“In disregard of China’s grave concerns and firm opposition, Pelosi insisted on visiting China’s Taiwan region. This constitutes gross interference in China’s internal affairs,” the dpa news agency quoted the Ministry as saying in a statement.

“It gravely undermines China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, seriously tramples on the one-China principle, and severely threatens peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”

The statement further added, “In response to Pelosi’s egregious provocation, China decides to adopt sanctions on Pelosi and her immediate family members in accordance with relevant laws of the People’s Republic of China.”

Pelosi had visited the self-governing democratic island on Tuesday, prompting Beijing to launch air and sea military drills with live fire in the waters off Taiwan. Earlier in the day, the Foreign Ministry had summoned the Japanese ambassador in retaliation over Tokyo’s criticism of China’s manoeuvres around Taiwan within the framework of the G7 group.

The Ministry said that a formal protest had been handed over to the envoy. On Thursday, the Ambassadors of the G7 countries and the EU’s representatives were similarly summoned.

The G7 had expressed its concern in a statement by its Foreign Ministers, stressing that there was no reason to use a visit by a top US politician to Taiwan as a pretext “for aggressive military activities”. Pelosi became the highest-ranking American diplomat to visit Taiwan in a quarter of a century. For the unversed, Beijing sees the self-governing democratic island as part of its territory and rejects any official contact with Taiwan.