China insisted that there will no negotiations between the U.S. when it comes to its demand that American Airlines should describe Taiwan as part of China. The Chinese Government gave the U.S. airlines a week to comply.
China said that American airlines should stop using merely "Taiwan" in their websites. Instead, they will use "Taiwan, China."
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang said that the Chinese Government will "wait and see" how the U.S. Government will take appropriate actions over this matter. He hopes that the U.S. Government will urge American airlines to follow the requirements set by China.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Government criticized China's demand and cited it as an "Orwellian nonsense."
"We would oppose a government's demand on private corporations that private corporations label something the way that the government demands it to do that," said U.S. State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert.
China's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying averred that China's demand to airlines over this matter is "clear-cut."
"Any foreign enterprise operating in China should abide by Chinese laws and regulations just as Chinese enterprises in foreign countries should abide by foreign laws and regulations," said Hua. "The one-China principle is a basic fact and common sense."
The Civil Aviation Administration of China sent a letter last April 2018 to various international airlines, informing them that their airlines should cease in placing China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan on equal footing. It further demanded that the airlines should refer to "Taiwan" as "China Taiwan" or "China Taiwan Region." The letter also mentioned that the airline map routes reflected in the airlines' websites should display territories with the same color as that of mainland China. Websites should not put Taiwan in other categories such as placing it under the Southeast Asia category.
Various foreign airlines feared that penalties will be set against them if they will not comply with China's demands, adversely affecting their operations in China.
"In the worst-case scenario, China can play hardball by barring the U.S. carriers from landing at Chinese airports," said aviation industry expert Corrine Png of Crucial Perspective.
Accordingly, U.S. carriers American Airlines Group Inc, Delta Air Lines Inc, United Continental Holdings Inc, and Hawaiian Holdings Inc will begin to change their reference to Taiwan. Other airlines - Qantas Airways Ltd, Air France-KLM, and Deutsche Lufthansa AG - have already followed China's demand.
Taiwan separated from China during the 1949 Civil War. Despite Taiwan's claim of independence, China continues to claim it as its own territory.
