China has imposed sanctions on Japanese lawmaker Keiji Furuya, alleging “collusion with Taiwan independence” forces in a move that is likely to escalate an already tense diplomatic row over Taiwan.
The measures, announced by China’s foreign ministry on Monday, include freezing any assets Mr Furuya holds within China, banning Chinese individuals and organisations from engaging with him, and denying him entry to mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macao.
According to a decision by the Chinese foreign ministry, Mr Furuya repeatedly visited the Taiwan region despite China’s strong opposition and colluded with “Taiwan independence” separatist forces, in violation of the “One-China” principle, reported the Global Times.
One China has been acknowledged by the US since 1979, when president Jimmy Carter developed closer ties with Beijing, at the expense of contact with Taiwan. He was the last US president to speak to a Taiwanese leader. The US has since followed the One China policy in international relations, officially accepting Beijing as the only legitimate Chinese government.
The ministry said Furuya's actions "constitute gross interference in China’s internal affairs, and seriously undermine China's sovereignty and territorial integrity".
Mr Furuya, as the head of a cross-party Japan-Taiwan lawmakers’ group, has visited Taiwan many times accompanying Japanese political leaders, most recently earlier this month to meet its president, Lai Ching-te, in Taipei.
China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as part of its territory, objects to official visits by foreign politicians to the island as they are seen to be undermining Beijing's claim over the island.
In response, speaking to reporters at Japan's parliament, Mr Furuya said visiting Taiwan is a natural function of the parliamentary group he leads, adding he had not visited mainland China in decades and had no assets there, according to Kyodo.
Ties between Tokyo and Beijing have deteriorated since Takaichi suggested last November that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could trigger a Japanese military response.
According to Taiwan Today, a publication owned by Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taipei, the Japanese legislature called for cooperation in several sectors including energy security, green energy as well as enhancement of supply chain.
Mr Furuya was also attending the government-funded Yushan Forum in Taipei and had proposed establishing “trilateral military band exchange” between Japan, the US and Taiwan, reported Taiwan’s official Central News Agency.
The move comes as the chairwoman of Taiwan's largest opposition party, the Kuomintang, is set to visit China next month after being invited by Chinese president Xi Jinping, the party said on Monday.
Chinese state news agency Xinhua said Cheng Li-wun would visit from 7 April to 12 April and go to Beijing, Shanghai and the eastern province of Jiangsu.
China's State Council has appointed former government official Janice Tse as secretary for constitutional and mainland affairs for the Hong Kong government, state media Xinhua reported on Monday.
Mr Furuya is the second Japanese lawmaker to have been sanctioned by China in recent months. Earlier last year, Beijing also sanctioned China-born Japanese lawmaker Seki Hei for his remarks on issues including Taiwan. Beijing targeted him for “long spreading fallacies on issues such as Taiwan, the Diaoyu Islands, history, Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong”, the country said at the time.
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