China penalises American institutions for receiving the leader of Taiwan during a stopover

China has slapped sanctions on two American organizations that hosted Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen during her recent travel in the United States. The Washington-based think tank Hudson Institute and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California would be banned from any cooperation, exchange or transaction with institutions and individuals in China. Key leaders of the organizations would also be barred from visiting China, unable to transact or cooperate with organizations or individuals there, and have any assets in the country frozen. China’s Communist Party claims the self-governing democracy of Taiwan as its own despite never having controlled it, and has vowed to take the island, by force if necessary. Two Taiwanese organizations, The Prospect Foundation and Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats, were also hit with sanctions on Friday.

Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan representative to the US, was also hit with sanctions on Friday. Hsiao was previously sanctioned by China last August, following a visit from then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to the island. Taiwan's foreign ministry responded to China's decision to impose new sanctions over Tsai's meeting with McCarthy as "irrational and absurd". Beijing's response has been muted so far compared to its actions following Pelosi's visit. Taiwan's Defense Ministry said it had tracked a Chinese aircraft carrier group, led by the carrier Shandong, passing through waters southeast of Taiwan for training in the Western Pacific.

China's retaliation against the US organizations comes at a tense time between the two powers, which have struggled to stabilize their relationship. US Republican congressman Michael McCaul said that speeding up the delivery of weapons to the island was "critically important" in building deterrence against China. The US maintains an unofficial relationship with Taiwan and Tsai's transit in the country was not an official visit in order to keep Washington aligned with its longstanding "One China" policy.