Islamabad, Aug 25: Pakistan today warned that Taiwan's decision to change its passports will create new tensions with the island's biggest rival, China. Taiwan recently revised its passports by adding the word "Taiwan" to the cover of the travel documents. The move angered Chinese leaders, who say the self-ruled, democratic island belongs to China and shouldn't try to act like an independent nation.

Pakistan has long been a close ally of China's, and today Pakistan's foreign ministry spokesman, Masood Khan, said that the new Taiwanese passports were "regrettable."

Khan added, "such a development (the passport change) would lead to tension in cross (Taiwan) strait relations."

Khan said that Pakistan would stick to its long-standing policy of considering Taiwan to be part of "One China" and wouldn't recognized the island's government.
Taiwan has said it changed its passports because many Taiwanese travelers have complained that foreign visa officers were mistaking them for citizens of mainland China.

That's because the covers of the old Taiwanese passports only had the island's official name, Republic of China.

This is the name both Taiwan and China used when they were both ruled by the Nationalist Party, which lost a civil war to the communists in 1949 and retreated to Taiwan.
Bureau Report