China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Friday the Washington-headquartered 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.
The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library was the site of a meeting between Tsai and US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday -- the first time a Taiwan president had met a US Speaker on American soil.Both occurred during stopovers in the course of the Taiwan President's 10-day international tour, which included official visits to Central America.
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. Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan representative to the US, was also hit with sanctions on Friday, according to Chinese state media. Hsiao was previously sanctioned by China last August, following a visit from then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to the island. On her Twitter account on Friday, Hsiao reacted to the sanctions saying,"Wow, the PRC just sanctions me again, for the second time."
Beijing's overall response to the latest meeting has appeared muted so far compared with its actions following Pelosi's visit. Ahead of the meeting between Tsai and McCarthy, 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.