Air NZ sticks with Taiwan reference
While airlines around the world have given in to Chinese demands on how they refer to Taiwan, Air New Zealand is still referring to Taipei as ‘‘the gateway to Taiwan’’.
The United States’ three largest airlines – American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United – are among those that changed how they described Taiwan on their websites ahead of the July 25 deadline set by Beijing.
The Civil Aviation Administration of China earlier this year instructed 44 airlines and other companies not to refer to Taiwan as a non-Chinese territory. The authority said airlines must call it ‘‘China Taiwan’’ or the ‘‘China Taiwan region’’.
An Air New Zealand spokesperson said the airline has ‘‘not received a communication of this nature’’ and did not respond to a query on its stance on the issue.
Taiwan split politically from mainland China during the 1949 civil war and is self-ruled. China, however, claims the island as part of its territory and has threatened military force annex it.
In recent years, China has used its economic and political clout to pressure other countries and their businesses to stop recognising Taiwan as a separate entity. Beijing threatened unspecified punishment for carriers that did not heed China’s demand.
American Airlines, Delta and United all dropped references to Taiwan on their websites. They now refer to Taiwanese destinations only by their city names – Taipei and Kaohsiung – or airport codes. However, they did not go so far as to say that Taiwan is part of China.
‘‘Like other carriers, American [Airlines] is implementing changes to address China’s request,’’ said Shannon Gilson, a spokeswoman for American, the world’s biggest airline.
‘‘Air travel is a global business, and we abide by the rules in countries where we operate.’’
Representatives for Delta and United made similar statements.
The US government had previously called China’s demand ‘‘Orwellian nonsense’’.
The Chinese Communist Party’s official newspaper, the
reported on Wednesday
to that all 44 airlines had complied with the demand.
Air New Zealand, however, has not changed references to Taiwan on its website and does not mention China at all on its page on Taipei.
Qantas is among the airlines to have given in to the Chinese demand – the Australian carrier now lists Taipei and Kaohsiung as part of Taiwan, China.
Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce defended the move in June by saying that Australia adheres to a ‘‘One China’’ policy that recognises the mainland and Taiwan as one country.
Air New Zealand will introduce non-stop services between Auckland and Taipei on November 1, 2018. The national carrier will fly to Taipei up to five times a week year-round.
New Zealand is among many countries that do not recognise Taiwan as independent from China and therefore does not have diplomatic relationships with it. However, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade describes Taiwan as ‘‘an important source of imports, tourism and investment, and an export market for New Zealand’’.