China ‘forces airline out of business’ as Palau maintains links with Taiwan

Taiwan has stepped in to help its ally Palau attract more tourists after an airline from the Micronesian nation said it was forced to shut under pressure from mainland China. The island’s battle to protect its few remaining official allies has intensified as its relations with Beijing have deteriorated. Palau has maintained ties with Taiwan but now one of its airlines, Palau Pacific Airways, says it has been forced to suspend operations because of a plunge in mainland Chinese tourists. A letter from the airline’s Taiwanese owner, Sea Passion Group, to Palau’s national congress accused Beijing of branding Palau “an illegal tour destination”, denting its business. The airline said it believed it had been targeted “most likely due to lack of diplomatic status”. A Palau-based member of staff from the airline said the shutdown would happen after August and would halt flights to and from Hong Kong and Macau, the only two routes it operates. Taipei’s foreign ministry said on Thursday that Taiwan’s main airline, China Airlines, has added two more weekly flights to Palau between June and August “to assist in attracting more overseas visitors”. “Helping our diplomatic allies with economic development is one of the important tasks in promoting bilateral cooperation,” it said in a statement.<br/>