Pakistan closed airspace to Taiwanese airlines, then reportedly lifted ban temporarily

Mixed · 2Pakistan barred Taiwanese airlines from its airspace, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday 28 October, quoting Defence Minister Khawaja Asif as saying: "The aviation division follows the One China policy -- only mainland China is allowed." 1 2 Mixed · 2Flight-tracking data showed China Airlines and EVA Air, both based in Taiwan, stopped flying over Pakistan from Sunday 25 October and rerouted their Europe-bound flights, according to Bloomberg and AFP. 1 2 Right · 1On Thursday 29 October Taiwan's Deputy Foreign Minister Chen Ming-chi told AFP that Pakistan had closed and then reopened its airspace to Taiwanese cargo and passenger flights, and that the airlines were told the ban would be lifted only temporarily, until the end of winter. 2

Mixed · 2Both airlines declined to comment to Bloomberg, and neither would confirm the closure or reopening to AFP; Taiwan's Civil Aviation Administration did not address the rerouting. 1 2 Mixed · 2Chen said Taiwan suspects China was behind the move, condemned Pakistan, and said it was the first time a country had closed its airspace to Taiwanese commercial flights; he warned the practice could spread to other Global South countries. Bloomberg likewise described it as the first such step by any country. 2 1 Right · 1China's foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said that "as far as we are aware, there are no obstacles for residents of the Taiwan region to travel internationally." 2

Mixed · 2Context: Pakistan cut official relations with Taiwan in 1951 and is closely tied to China through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor; China, Pakistan's largest weapons supplier, allows Taiwanese airlines to use its own airspace. In April, Seychelles, Mauritius and Madagascar revoked overflight permits for President Lai Ching-te's flight to Eswatini, which Taiwan blamed on Chinese pressure. 1 2