Three major US airlines have changed their Web sites to refer to Taiwan only by city names, in response to Beijing’s demand that the changes be made by yesterday.
Reuters on Tuesday reported that the three major US carriers — American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines — had agreed to meet China’s request to change the way they refer to Taiwan online.
An unnamed US official was quoted as saying that the US Department of State had on Monday promised China’s embassy in Washington that the carriers’ English and Chinese-language Web sites would only display city names for Taiwan and would remove references to Taiwan as a nation.
Photo: Nadia Tsao, Taipei Times
American Airlines yesterday morning was the first to comply, changing references from “Taipei, Taiwan,” to only “Taipei.”
When approached for questioning, department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said she was not informed of the latest developments and urged reporters to speak directly to the airlines.
However, the US government is opposed to such demands, she added.
“We would oppose a government’s demand on private corporations that private corporations label something the way that the government demands it to do,” she said.
Beijing understood the US government’s position well, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs spokeswoman Grace Choi said.
The department told Beijing that it was strongly opposed to attempts from China to pressure private US companies into publicly using language indicative of a particular political position, she said, adding that the department’s point of view on the matter had not changed.
Another unnamed department official reiterated that the agency was opposed to Beijing giving orders to US companies, saying that the changes could inconvenience customers.
Comparatively, Chinese companies are free to operate their Web sites without any interference from the US government, the official said, adding that the department has urged other nations to similarly express their concerns to Beijing over its pressure on private companies.
The department would continue to discuss the issue with the Chinese government, but the decision is ultimately in the hands of the companies themselves, the official said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday in a statement said that China has no jurisdiction over Taiwan and that the democratic nation’s existence cannot be denied.
“We will not simply disappear under pressure from China,” the statement said.
The ministry condemned Beijing’s use of political force to interfere with the operations of private foreign businesses as “rude and unreasonable,” saying that it has been in touch with US government departments and representatives, and hopes that the US companies would reverse the changes.
The ministry also expressed thanks to the US firms and other international airlines for showing reluctance to making the changes, despite mounting pressure from China.
Taiwan’s successes in democratization and the protection of human rights have earned it international praise, the ministry said, adding that Taiwanese would continue their way of life without deterrence by China’s threats.
Taiwan calls on the support of like-minded nations to stand up to China’s attempts to interfere with private firms, the statement added.
Additional reporting by Lu Yi-hsuan
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS