China sanctions former Republican Rep Mike Gallagher after Taiwan president's inauguration

The Chinese foreign ministry announced sanctions against former Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., on Tuesday, the day after Taiwan inaugurated a new president.

The former U.S. lawmaker, whose early departure from Congress last month further narrowed the GOP’s slim House majority, has been banned from entering China, the ministry said according to Reuters.

The Chinese foreign ministry reportedly said Gallagher "interfered in China's internal affairs" without elaborating, and that China, therefore, will freeze his assets in the country and ban organizations and individuals there from cooperating with him.

At a press briefing in Beijing on Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin also criticized U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken for congratulating Taiwan’s new President Lai Ching-te.

"It’s a serious violation of the political commitment made by the US to maintain only cultural, commercial and other unofficial relations with the Taiwan region," Wang said, according to Bloomberg.

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In February, Gallagher led a U.S. congressional delegation to visit Taiwan, where he met with both then-President Tsai Ing-wen and her successor, Lai.

According to the select committee, Gallagher told Tsai that the trip was meant for Democrats and Republicans to show "our bipartisan support for this partnership" and thanked her for "not only being an` incredible leader here in Taiwan, but really distinguishing yourself as a leader within the free world."

"Freedom is under attack from authoritarian aggression. And we need to be more vigilant than ever if we want to pass on this gift of freedom we've been given to the next generation," he said at