China slaps trade restrictions on Taiwan — Analysis
Imports of Taiwanese citrus and fish have been targeted over Nancy Pelosi’s trip to the island
China suspended imports of Taiwanese products as tensions rise over Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, which was self-governed.
Chinese authorities have ordered that imports of Taiwanese lemons and other types of fish be suspended. The restrictions were imposed due to excessive pesticide residue detected “Multiple times” while some frozen fish packages had tested positive for coronavirus, they said.
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce made a separate statement and stated it would stop exporting sand to Taiwan, based upon the legal documentation. Beyond this, there were no further details from the ministry.
Pelosi visited Taiwan Monday and placed a ban on over 100 Taiwanese food companies, including those that produce tea, honey, or seafood. Beijing stated that all the companies had not renewed their export registrations. They would only be permitted to sell their products until July 31st.
Wu Shou Mei, Taiwan Food and Drug Administration director, stated that Beijing may have been trying to treat Taiwanese makers differently than other countries.
Beijing has placed trade restrictions on Taipei before. It also blocked pineapple imports last year after claiming that pests were found in several shipments. Taiwan, however, rebuffed the claim at the time, reiterating that the fruit is “It is of highest quality and meets strict international certification standards”.
China, Taiwan’s biggest trade partner with $328.3 million spent last year, is Taiwan’s second largest. However, Taiwan exports more than imports of $172 billion.
New restrictions were announced in the wake of Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Washington, which provoked fierce protests from Beijing. China believes that the trip by the senior US official violates the country’s sovereignty. According to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, some US politicians are “openly playing with fire”Concerning Taiwan.
The US, he said, is “continuously undermining China’s sovereignty, emasculating the One China policy and even deliberately trying to artificially create an incident in the Taiwan Strait.”
Chinese officials announced Wednesday that military drills would be conducted off Taiwan Strait. Live firing will take place in Taiwan Strait. Missile test launches in the east sea of Taiwan were also planned.
Pelosi also met with Taipei’s MPs. Members of the US delegation held closed-door talks with Taiwanese officials. Pelosi had earlier stated that she was planning to meet with counterparts in Taiwan on security, economy, and governance issues.
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