China for the first time on Friday said Taiwanese politicians who support the island’s independence will be made “criminally liable for life”, and will be barred from entering, or having any connection with the mainland.

The announcement by China’s Taiwan affairs office comes in the backdrop of heightened military and diplomatic tension with self-ruled Taiwan, which Beijing claims as a breakaway region and has not ruled out using force to reunify it with the mainland.

The office named Taiwan’s Premier Su Tseng-chang, parliament speaker You Si-kun and foreign minister Joseph Wu as people who are “stubbornly pro-Taiwan independence”.

“Those on the list, together with their relatives, shall not enter the mainland and the two special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao, and their affiliated institutions shall be restricted from forging any cooperation with organisations and individuals on the mainland,” Taiwan affairs office spokesperson, Zhu Fenglian said on Friday.