Beijing, Dec. 15 -- China on Monday announced that it has imposed sanctions on Shigeru Iwasaki, former chief of the Joint Staff of the Japan Self-Defence Forces, saying he had "colluded with separatist forces" in Taiwan.

Beijing had, in March this year, lodged a protest over the appointment of Iwasaki as an honorary adviser to the Executive Yuan, the Taiwanese government's highest administrative body.

According to a statement by the Chinese foreign ministry, the "countermeasures" on Iwasaki include "freezing his movable and immovable assets and other types of property" within China, the state-run Global Times reported.

It also prohibits organizations and individuals within China from conducting any transactions, cooperation or other su...