Snickers Apologizes to China for Saying Taiwan Is Independent Country

• Viral imagery from a Snickers promotional occasion claiming Taiwan as a rustic sparked backlash from Chinese language public.
• Mars Wrigley issued an apology on the Chinese language social media platform Weibo.
• Chinese language officers issued sanctions on Home Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday after her go to to Taiwan.

The makers of the Snickers sweet bar, Mars Wrigley, issued an apology to China on Friday after the corporate confronted backlash for suggesting Taiwan is an impartial nation throughout a promotional occasion.

The criticism stemmed from a launch occasion debuting a limited-edition Snickers bar, throughout which the corporate stated the brand new product was out there in choose international locations together with South Korea, Malaysia, and Taiwan, Reuters reported.

Photos and video from the occasion went viral on the Chinese language social media platform Weibo, prompting Mars Wrigley to problem an apology on its Snickers China Weibo account and guarantee the general public that it will amend the content material in query. 

“Mars Wrigley respects China’s nationwide sovereignty and territorial integrity and conducts its enterprise operations in strict compliance with native Chinese language legal guidelines and laws,” Mars Wrigley stated within the assertion.

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One commenter on Weibo garnered 8,000 likes of their criticism of the commercial.

“Say it: Taiwan is an inseparable a part of China’s territory!” the remark learn, in keeping with a report from Reuters.

Though Taiwan rejects China’s sovereignty claims, the Chinese language authorities nonetheless considers the island part of its territory, although the nation has operated as a self-governed democratic nation since 1949.  

The incident comes on the heels of heightened stress after US Home Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan on Tuesday, in what Chinese language officers referred to as an “egregious professional trip.”

China had tried to thwart the journey forward of her arrival, citing threats of army assaults and financial penalties. The nation later introduced army drills round Taiwan and a ban on imports from the nation. 

China subsequently issued sanctions on Pelosi and her household on Friday. That very same day, Apple warned suppliers to not use “made in Taiwan” labels on merchandise to keep away from angering China.

“We would like Taiwan to all the time have freedom with safety and we’re not backing away from that,” Pelosi stated at a press occasion on Wednesday.