OREANDA-NEWS Earlier in the day, Beijing imposed sanctions on seven Taiwanese officials over their support for the self-ruled island's independence by banning them from entering mainland China.

The spokesperson also expressed hope that the Taiwanese people "would unite with their compatriots on the mainland to promote the peaceful development of relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait."China announced sanctions in response to the visit of two US senior delegations to Taiwan. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi led a delegation to Taipei from August 2-3 and Senator Ed Markey from August 14-15.Taiwan became alienated from Beijing after becoming a stronghold of the Chinese Nationalist Party (the Kuomintang) that suffered defeat to the Communist Party in a civil war in 1949.

The Chinese mainland and the island resumed business and informal contacts in the late 1980s. Beijing opposes any official contacts of foreign countries with Taiwan and considers Chinese sovereignty over the island indisputable.