According to a report from Beijing Daily Client, on October 10, Gao Jiakun, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, held a regular press conference.
A Reuters reporter asked: The Trump administration proposed on Thursday to prohibit Chinese airlines from flying over Russian airspace on flights between China and the United States, arguing that this would put American airlines at a disadvantage. What is the Ministry's comment on this?
Gao Jiakun said: "For specific issues, we suggest you ask the relevant authorities in China."
He pointed out that imposing restrictions on Chinese airlines' operations is not conducive to people-to-people exchanges between the two countries. "We suggest that the U.S. should reflect on the impact of its policies on its own companies, rather than unfairly attack other countries and make global consumers pay the price."
Reuters reported that the U.S. move comes as Sino-U.S. relations have become increasingly tense due to a series of trade issues. This decision may affect some U.S. flights of China Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, and Xiamen Airlines.
Currently, the U.S. Department of Transportation has given Chinese airlines two days to respond to this order, and warned that the final order could take effect as early as November this year.
Since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, in retaliation for the U.S. banning Russian airlines from flying over U.S. airspace, Russia has banned U.S. airlines and other Western airlines from flying over its airspace. In addition to being prohibited by Russia or their own governments from entering Russian airspace, some U.S. and Western airlines have also chosen not to fly over Russian airspace due to safety concerns.
On the other hand, Chinese airlines continue to fly over Russian airspace, taking the shorter northern route to Europe and North America. For example, the flight time for British airlines on the London-Beijing route is two and a half hours longer than that of Chinese airlines, facing higher fuel and cost expenses.
U.S. airlines, which have been "hurting themselves" by banning flights over Russian airspace, have repeatedly criticized the fact that some Chinese airlines can still fly over Russian airspace, claiming that this gives Chinese airlines advantages such as reduced flight time and fuel consumption.
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