Beijing Sanctions Belize and Paraguay Ministers Over Taiwan Ties
On.cc · 2 SOURCES1 day ago4 MIN
Summary
China's Foreign Ministry said on Monday, October 12, that it had imposed countermeasures with immediate effect on two officials from Belize and Paraguay over their support for those countries' diplomatic ties with Taiwan. The sanctions target Belize's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade, Education, Culture, Science and Technology, Fonseca (豐塞卡), and Paraguay's Minister of Communications and Technologies, Villate (比利亞特), under China's Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law.
Key Points
- Beijing announced the measures in Beijing on Monday, October 12, saying they took effect immediately against one official from Belize and one from Paraguay.
- The sanctioned officials are Belize minister Fonseca and Paraguay communications and technologies minister Villate, both named by the Foreign Ministry.
- China said certain "anti-China politicians" in Belize and Paraguay had, for personal interests, persistently backed so-called diplomatic relations with Taiwan and harmed China's core interests.
- The countermeasures include freezing movable, immovable and other property within China, and barring organizations and individuals in China from transactions or cooperation with them.
- China will also deny them visas and bar their entry into China, with the restriction explicitly covering Hong Kong and Macau.
Why It Matters
For Hong Kong readers, the most direct consequence is that the entry ban expressly extends to Hong Kong, meaning the two named officials are barred from entering the city under the announced measures. The case also shows how Beijing is using the Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law in disputes linked to Taiwan's remaining diplomatic partners