China sanctions chair of US House Foreign Affairs Committee

ISTANBUL

China on Thursday announced sanctions on the chairman of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee after last week he led a delegation of US lawmakers to Taiwan, which China sees as its territory.

“Republican Congressman Michael McCaul of Texas has frequently taken words and deeds to interfere in China’s internal affairs and harm China’s interests in recent years,” China’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

It said McCaul recently led a delegation to “visit the Taiwan region of China, seriously violating the one-China principle and relationship between China and the US.”

His visit threatened “China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and sends a serious wrong signal to the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces,” the statement added.

McCaul has represented Texas’ 10th congressional district since 2005, and took the reins of the powerful committee early this year.

Beijing said McCaul’s “movable property, immovable property and other types of property within the territory” of China will be “frozen.”

After his trip, McCaul had tweeted: “I’m proud to lead a bipartisan group of my colleagues in visiting (the capital) Taipei, where we will meet with business leaders and officials to discuss bolstering the US economic and defense relationship with Taiwan.

“We will not give in to the CCP's (Chinese Communist Party) intimidation.”

China also banned any Chinese organization or individuals from carrying out relevant transactions or cooperating with the US lawmaker.

“No visa will be issued to the person himself, and he will not be allowed to enter the country,” the ministry added.

China considers Taiwan its “breakaway province,” while Taipei has insisted on its independence since 1949.