Beijing government fines 7-Eleven more than $7,000 for listing Taiwan as a country
The Beijing municipal government fined 7-Eleven more than $7,000 because on its website the company listed the island of Taiwan as a country and displayed maps and borders that China called false.
The Beijing branch of 7-Eleven was fined after it "wrongly presented Taiwan province as an independent country" on its website, according to Hong Kong outlet South China Morning Post. The municipal government also said the company did not mark borders correctly for islands in the South China Sea, the sovereignty over which is disputed between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and other nations.
In the past year, China has ramped up military and diplomatic pressure against the self-governing island of Taiwan, which it views as a rogue territory.
China blasted both the U.S. and Lithuania earlier this week after the European nation allowed Taiwanese diplomats to use the designation of Taiwan for its diplomatic office instead of China's preferred name for the island, Chinese Taipei. U.S. officials have defended the move by Lithuania.
The Chinese government also criticized the U.S. for inviting Taiwan to a democracy summit in December. The U.S. is a major arms supplier and defender of the island.
