The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday confirmed that the aircraft flying President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to Panama flew over Cuba.
“It is the first flight over Cuba,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Wu Chih-chung (吳志中) told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign and National Defense Committee, adding that it helped save some time.
For two countries, it is usual international practice to mutually allow flights through their respective air spaces, so the ministry authorized China Airlines (CAL) to negotiate with Cuba, Wu said.
The ministry did not get involved in the matter, nor did it ask for assistance from the US, he said.
Wu was answering questions from lawmakers about a media report on Sunday that China Airlines had arranged for Tsai’s plane to fly over Cuba on Saturday on its way from Miami, Florida, to Panama.
The United News Network carried the report, citing senior officials as saying that it would probably be the first time a Republic of China head of state has flown over Cuba.
The report attributed the overflight to Beijing’s silence and that Cuba is increasingly making friends with democratic countries after re-establishing diplomatic relations with the US last year.
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