More than 200 flights have been cancelled by two Chinese carriers, China Eastern Airlines and Xiamen Airlines, due to the Taiwanese government refusing to approve four new routes. The routes were opened by the Civil Aviation Administration of China a few weeks ago. According to CNN, Taiwan’s Civil Aeronautics Administration said it hadn’t been consulted over the routes. One of them, known as M503, prompted a previous dispute between Taipei and Beijing in 2015.
Taiwan’s President, Tsai Ing-Wen, issued the following statement,
“Recent unilateral actions by #China — including M503 flight route & increased military exercises — are destabilizing & should be avoided,” she tweeted earlier this month. “#Taiwan will continue to safeguard the status quo. We call on all parties to do the same.”
Final Word
While I do not want to discuss the civil/political history of Taiwan and China, I feel bad for the travelers that made plans to visit Taiwan during the Lunar New Year holiday. I hope the situation is able to be resolved and does not lead to further issues.
H/T: CNN
Featured image courtesy of SeatGuru.
