The government on Thursday strongly defended national carrier Air India’s decision to rename Taiwan as Chinese Taipei on its website, saying the move was consistent with international norms and India’s own ‘One-China’ policy.
‘’You will have to see the nomenclature being used all over the world. It is (also) in line with our position on Taiwan since 1949,’’ External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar told media persons.
Earlier in the day, an airlines spokesperson was quoted as saying that the national carrier had changed the name following instructions from the government.
China had raised concerns at various international airlines describing Taiwan as a separate region. Beijing considers Taiwan a province of China. While Air India does not have flights to Taipei, it has a code-sharing arrangement with Air China.
The decision comes at a time when both India and China are trying to reset their ties following last year’s military stand-off at Doklam.
After the informal summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in April-end, the two countries have taken a series of steps to enhance mutual trust.
In this connection, the MEA spokesperson noted that a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) delegation, led by Lt Gen Liu Xiaowu, was currently visiting India, saying New Delhi encouraged such high-level exchanges. He said Chinese Defence Minister Gen Wei Fenghe would also visit India later this year.