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Taiwan is reportedly considering countermeasures against foreign airlines that recently accepted the Chinese government demand to change their website references to the island so that it reflects it as being part of mainland China. Although the specifics of the measures are unclear, this would be Taiwan’s first official response to the increasing pressure from China and its airline demand, that Taiwan has repeatedly condemned as “bullying”.

According to one official from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) who asked not to be identified, Taiwanese authorities are currently studying countermeasures against airlines that have complied with the Chinese demand to change their website references of Taiwan as a “country”, Bloomberg reports.

The Taipei-based United Daily News broke the story on August 6, 2018, writing that the measures would focus on the island’s airports and could include banning the offending airlines from using boarding bridges as well as changing takeoff and landing slots. In addition, authorities are considering offering incentives such as reducing or cancelling landing fees and facility charges for carriers that would opt for a more neutral naming of Taiwan. The MOTC did not respond immediately to request for comment.

Earlier this year, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) sent a letter to 44 foreign airlines ordering them not to identify Hong Kong and Taiwan as separate territories from mainland China. The letter stipulated that Taiwan must be referred to as either "China Taiwan" or the "China Taiwan region" and that maps must display the island in the same color as mainland China.

Carriers were given a July 25, 2018, deadline to comply or face penalties. It was unclear what those penalties would be, but in December 2017, Chinese authorities added a clause to rules governing foreign airlines saying regulators could change a company’s permit if it did not meet the demand, Reuters reported at the time. As of June 26, 2018, forty of the 44 airlines, including Air Canada, Air France, Lufthansa, British Airways, Qantas, have changed their website references to Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

And despite criticism from the White House, the U.S. big three – American, Delta, and United – have complied with China’s request and now refer to destinations in Taiwan on their websites only by the city names of Taipei and Kaohsiung, or by airport codes, without a country name or code. This can be seen on American’s route map or United’s list of destinations; and if you search for an airport in Taiwan on Delta’s website, you will find the country name referred to as “Taiwan (China)”.

However, China states those changes are "incomplete". The CAAC said four U.S. airlines – American, Delta, United, and Hawaiian Airlines – had submitted their revisions on July 25, 2018, requesting a two-week extension for website audits, according to Reuters. They have until August 9, 2018, to fully implement the Chinese regulator’s directive.