Taiwan still mulling countermeasures to name change by airlines: MOTC

ROC Central News Agency

2018/08/06 15:48:51

Taipei, Aug. 6 (CNA) The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) said Monday that the government is considering its next move in response to the recent decision by a number of international airlines to change the way they refer to Taiwan on their websites due to pressure from China.

The Taiwan government has asked the airlines to change back Taiwan's designation and is now considering how to proceed further on the issue, Deputy Minister of Transportation and Communications Wang Kwo-tsai (王國材) said.

"We wrote a letter to the foreign aviation companies on Aug. 3, asking them to make due corrections, and we're currently mulling possible countermeasures," Wang said. "But there are no answers for the time being."

He was responding to a report Monday in the United Daily News, which said that the MOTC was considering countermeasures against the 44 foreign airlines, such as adjusting their time slots at Taiwan airports and denying them the use of jet bridges.

According to officials of the Civil Aeronautics Administration, however, adopting such retaliatory measures might invite similar responses from other countries against Taiwan-based airlines, which in turn would hurt Taiwan's aviation industry.

On April 25, China issued an order for international airlines to stop listing Taiwan as a country on their websites.

Since then, some airlines have been using the terms Taiwan China; China Taipei; Taipei, CN; or simply Asia, East Asia and Northeast Asia without mentioning the country.

(By Wang Shu-feng and Flor Wang)
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