China on Wednesday halted trade with Taiwan and imposed fresh ban on  Taiwanese imports and said it is suspending imports of citrus fruits and fish products from Taipei.

The move comes amid US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.

Taking to Twitter, Li Bijian, China’s Consul General in Karachi tweeted, “Chinese mainland suspends imports of citrus fruits, chilled white hairtail and frozen horse mackerel from Taiwan region from Wednesday: General Administration of Customs.”

According to reports by Xinhua, “China’s General Administration of Customs (GAC) said in a statement that they will suspend two types of fish products from the Taiwan region starting Wednesday.”

Besides, the GAC said in an online statement that the entry of citrus fruits, including grapefruits, lemons, and oranges, as well as chilled large head hairtail and frozen horse mackerel from Taiwan, will be suspended in accordance with the mainland’s relevant regulations,.

Since last year, the Chinese authorities have suspended products from Taiwan. China has repeatedly said that it detected Planococcus minor, as well as excessive residues of fenthion and dimethoate in citrus fruits imported from Taiwan, according to Xinhua.

In June this year, packages of chilled largehead hairtail and frozen horse mackerel from Taiwan tested positive for COVID-19, it noted. The decisions were made to prevent risks, the GAC said.

Beijing maintained that Pelosi’s visit is a serious violation of the one-China principle and the provisions of the three China-US joint communiques. It said the visit gravely undermines peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and sends a seriously wrong signal to the “separatist forces for Taiwan independence”.

Shortly after Pelosi landed in Taipei on Tuesday, she reaffirmed her country’s unwavering commitment to supporting Taiwan’s democracy and said this trip in no way contradicts longstanding United States policy on the self-governed island.

Irked by the United States’ move, China announced economic sanctions and import bans on several Taiwanese companies producing pastries, baked goods and sweets.

On Tuesday, China temporarily halted imports of products from multiple Taiwanese food companies, Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture (COA) confirmed, Focus Taiwan reported.

The COA confirmed that the blacklisted companies include producers of tea leaves, dried fruits, honey, cocoa beans, and vegetables, as well as catches from around 700 fishing vessels, the agency said.

Data from China’s General Administration of Customs, however, suggests that multiple Taiwanese companies whose registration status is up to date have also been affected by the ban.

On its website, the customs administration lists a total of 107 registered Taiwanese brands under the category “crackers, pastries and noodles,” of which 35 companies are currently labelled “imports temporarily suspended,” despite having up-to-date registration, Focus Taiwan reported.

Such a visit is apparently very much dangerous and very much provocative. If the US insist on making visit, China will take a firm and strong measures to safeguard our national sovereignty, it said.

(With inputs from ANI)