(../../../../favicon_aje.ico) China sanctions Paraguay, Belize ministers over Taiwan ties | Politics News | Al Jazeera    (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/12/china-sanctions-paraguay-belize-ministers-over-taiwan-ties)                                             (https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml)  (https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/news/2026/10/12/china-sanctions-paraguay-belize-ministers-over-taiwan-ties)  (https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/2025-10-10T055620Z_915059261_RC2P8HAXN45P_RTRMADP_3_TAIWAN-POLITICS-1760082600.jpg?resize=1920%2C1440)  (../../../../wp-content/uploads/2025/10/2025-10-10T055620Z_915059261_RC2P8HAXN45P_RTRMADP_3_TAIWAN-POLITICS-1760082600.jpg@resize=770,513&quality=80)     (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org/scripttemplates/otSDKStub.js) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (../../../../static/css/vendor~main~d08ff9cb.24bf1742.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~748942c6.7538e11f.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~b07b7304.e3bc53a0.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~6e6dca10.74fd263a.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~5db14389.9adb4a4c.r2.chunk.css) (https://www.aljazeera.com/static/media/Roboto-Bold.52bb58c8.woff2) (https://www.aljazeera.com/static/media/Roboto-Regular.c5bf51b6.woff2)  (../../../../static/css/vendor~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-blo~5f903362.2e08e417.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-~41c72a2c.3f309873.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-~06be7c11.0625e98d.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/common~493df0b3.ec3ab9b5.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/pages/article-page~493df0b3.accd71c7.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/common~493df0b3.ec3ab9b5.r2.chunk.css)   Skip links (china-sanctions-paraguay-belize-ministers-over-taiwan-ties@traffic_source=rss.html#main-content-area) Skip to Content  (https://www.aljazeera.com/)          (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/live) play    Live    Sign up  Show navigation menu     Navigation menu (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/) News    Show more news sections  (https://www.aljazeera.com/africa/) Africa   (https://www.aljazeera.com/asia/) Asia   (https://www.aljazeera.com/us-canada/) US & Canada   (https://www.aljazeera.com/latin-america/) Latin America   (https://www.aljazeera.com/europe/) Europe   (https://www.aljazeera.com/asia-pacific/) Asia Pacific      (https://www.aljazeera.com/middle-east/) Middle East   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/explainer/) Explained   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sports) Sport   (https://www.aljazeera.com/opinion/) Opinion   (https://www.aljazeera.com/videos/) Video   More   Show more sections  (https://www.aljazeera.com/aljazeera-originals) Originals   (https://www.aljazeera.com/features/) Features   (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/) Economy   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/human-rights/) Human Rights   (https://www.aljazeera.com/climate-crisis) Climate Crisis   (https://www.aljazeera.com/investigations/) Investigations   (https://www.aljazeera.com/interactives/) Interactives   (https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/) In Pictures   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/science-and-technology/) Science & Technology   (https://www.aljazeera.com/audio/podcasts) Podcasts   (https://www.aljazeera.com/travel) Travel   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sponsored/) Sponsored Content        (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/live) play    Live    Click here to search search     Sign up        (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/) News |(https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/politics/) Politics   China sanctions Paraguay, Belize ministers over Taiwan ties Chinese foreign ministry cites national sovereignty and Taiwan separatist activities as reasons behind the measures.   Listen   Listen (3 mins)       Save       Share China sanctions Paraguay, Belize ministers over Taiwan ties on social media share-nodes    Share (https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Foreyjz) facebook      (https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=China%20sanctions%20Paraguay%2C%20Belize%20ministers%20over%20Taiwan%20ties&source=sharethiscom&related=sharethis&via=AJEnglish&url=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Foreyjz) x    (whatsapp://send?text=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Foreyjz) whatsapp-stroke    (https://aje.news/oreyjz)  copylink          google       Add Al Jazeera on Google  info      (Taiwan's flag is carried across the sky during National Day celebrations in Taipei, Taiwan)   Taiwan's flag is carried across the sky during National Day celebrations in Taipei, Taiwan, on October 10, 2025 [Ann Wang/Reuters]   By  AFPand Reuters   Published On 12 Oct 2026 12 Oct 2026    China has sanctioned Paraguay’s communications minister and Belize’s foreign minister over ties to Taiwan. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs made the announcement on Monday, citing the safeguarding of China’s national sovereignty and opposition to Taiwan separatist activities as the reasons behind the measures, which went into effect the same day. Recommended Stories list of 3 items list 1 of 3 (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/10/taiwan-president-says-defence-spending-boost-aims-to-deter-war) Taiwan president says defence spending boost aims to ‘deter war’  list 2 of 3 (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/11/what-the-iran-war-has-done-to-the-worlds-energy-supply-in-charts) What the Iran war has done to the world’s energy supply, in charts  list 3 of 3 (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/12/north-korea-fires-multiple-ballistic-missiles-towards-the-sea) North Korea fires multiple ballistic missiles towards the sea   end of list  The measures against Paraguay’s Communications Minister Gustavo Villate and Belize’s Foreign Minister Francis Fonseca include the freezing of their assets in China and the denial of entry visas to Hong Kong and Macau. The sanctions also prohibit Chinese organisations and individuals from engaging in transactions, cooperation or other activities with the ministers. The Foreign Ministry said that “certain anti-China politicians” who are “driven by self-interest” have pushed their nations to maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Beijing said the ministers had “taken a series of egregious actions and statements”, which are “damaging China’s core interests”. Paraguay and Belize are two of 12 countries that maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. China views Taiwan as its territory, a view the island’s government strongly rejects. The measures come two days after Taiwan’s National Day celebration. In a National Day speech outside the Presidential Office on Saturday, Taiwan President William Lai Ching-te said the island “cherishes peace” and will “not give up our freedom”. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office condemned Lai’s speech, saying it “disregards facts, ⁠distorts the truth, misleads the public, and reveals ulterior motives”. Advertisement    In January, Chinese President Xi Jinping (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/1/chinas-xi-says-reunification-with-taiwan-unstoppable) pledged to achieve the “reunification” of China and Taiwan, calling the goal “unstoppable”. Diplomatic relations Paraguay’s Communications Minister Villate marked Taiwan’s National Day with a social media post, saying: “Paraguay reaffirms its relationship of friendship and cooperation, based on shared values and principles: the self-determination of peoples, human rights and democracy.” The Belize embassy in Taiwan also posted a message on its Facebook celebrating the 37th anniversary of their diplomatic relations. “Together, we look forward to a future of growth, opportunity, and lasting friendship,” the embassy wrote. Last month, Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung visited Belize. His ministry said the two sides had agreed to deepen ties. Taiwan’s other allies in the Americas include Guatemala and Haiti. It also has formal diplomatic ties with three Caribbean islands. The United States does not have ⁠formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, but Washington is bound by law to provide the island with the means to ‌defend itself. Earlier this month, the US (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/2/us-delivers-f-16v-fighter-jets-to-taiwan-as-island-eyes-threat-from-china) delivered two fighter jets to Taiwan as the island seeks to build its defence capabilities to deter a feared attack from (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/101-east/2026/8/15/is-china-seeking-to-copy-irans-strait-of-hormuz-blockade-around-taiwan) China .            aj-logo             aj-logo             aj-logo       Advertisement          About About   Show more  (https://www.aljazeera.com/about-us) About Us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/code-of-ethics/) Code of Ethics   (https://www.aljazeera.com/terms-and-conditions/) Terms and Conditions   (https://www.aljazeera.com/eu-eea-regulatory/) EU/EEA Regulatory Notice   (https://privacy.aljazeera.net/) Privacy Policy   (https://privacy.aljazeera.net/cookie/) Cookie Policy   (https://www.aljazeera.com/) Cookie Preferences    (https://trust.aljazeera.net/accessibility/) Accessibility Statement   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sitemap) Sitemap   (https://careers.aljazeera.net/) Work for us      Connect Connect   Show more  (https://network.aljazeera.net/en/contact?tid=6) Contact Us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/user-accounts-help) User Accounts Help   (https://commercial.aljazeera.net/) Advertise with us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/stay-connected) Stay Connected   (https://www.aljazeera.com/newsletters) Newsletters   (https://sat.aljazeera.net/en) Channel Finder   (https://www.aljazeera.com/schedule/) TV Schedule   (https://www.aljazeera.com/podcasts/) Podcasts   (https://webapps.aljazeera.net/aje/tips/) Submit a Tip   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sponsored) Paid Partner Content      Our Channels Our Channels   Show more  (http://aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Arabic   (https://www.aljazeera.com/) Al Jazeera English   (https://www.ajiunit.com/) Al Jazeera Investigative Unit   (https://www.aljazeeramubasher.net/) Al Jazeera Mubasher   (http://doc.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Documentary   (http://balkans.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Balkans   (http://ajplus.net/) AJ+      Our Network Our Network   Show more  (http://studies.aljazeera.net/en/) Al Jazeera Centre for Studies   (http://training.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Media Institute   (http://learning.aljazeera.net/) Learn Arabic   (http://liberties.aljazeera.com/en) Al Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human Rights   (http://forum.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Forum   (https://hotels.aljazeera.net/en) Al Jazeera Hotel Partners        Follow Al Jazeera English: (https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera) facebook       (https://twitter.com/ajenglish) twitter     (https://www.youtube.com/aljazeeraenglish) youtube     (https://www.instagram.com/aljazeeraenglish/?hl=en) instagram-colored-outline                          (https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml) rss     (https://bsky.app/profile/aljazeera.com) bluesky     (https://www.tiktok.com/@aljazeeraenglish) tiktok-colored-outline                  (Al Jazeera Media Network logo)   © 2026 Al Jazeera Media Network