Pakistan just banned Taiwan's airlines and went further than China itself

Pakistan just became the first country on Earth to ban Taiwanese airlines from its skies.

And it did it for China.

Khawaja Asif, Pakistan's Defence Minister, confirmed it a few hours ago. He says quote "we have permitted only Chinese airlines to fly over Pakistan".

So no Taiwanese planes. At all.

Here's the part that matters. China itself doesn't even go this far. Taiwanese airlines can still fly over mainland China right now. Pakistan just went further than Beijing has ever asked anyone to go.

And this isn't a threat sitting on paper. It's already moved planes.

China Airlines and EVA Airways are Taiwan's two biggest airlines. Neither one has flown over Pakistan since the morning of 25 October. At least a dozen of their Asia-to-Europe flights have been sent north over Russia instead, according to tracking data. Daily Pakistan says it's more than ten flights. Either way, it's a dozen planes on a route they used to fly without thinking about it.

So why does Pakistan's airspace even matter this much?

Because it sits right on the shortcut between East Asia and Europe. Cut it off, and the only road left north is Russia.

And Russia is not an easy road.

Most Western airlines stopped flying over Russia after it invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Sanctions and safety fears pushed them out. Taiwanese airlines never got banned from Russian skies. They just kept flying there anyway. Now Pakistan's new rule is pushing them deeper into the one stretch of sky most of the world still won't touch.

Taiwan's Civil Aviation Administration hasn't addressed Pakistan's decision directly. It has said one thing: it has never banned its own carriers from flying over Russia. China Airlines and EVA Air both declined to comment.