Tension rises as China ignores Taiwan and opens number of disputed routes

In what would appear to be an overt snub to Taiwanese authorities, China has opened up a number of disputed air routes, including a northbound M503 route in the Taiwan Strait, without informing Taiwan. According to Taiwan, this contravenes a deal agreed in 2015 to discuss such routes prior to opening.
Openly, Taiwan has condemned the opening of these routes as they appear to be too close to existing routes that serve airports in outlying groups of Taiwan-controlled islands, and thus pose a risk to safety. China, however, has dismissed this stance adopted by the democratic Taiwanese government, stating that it has no need to seek approval for the new routes as they do not pose any form of risk to safety.
The routes in question are being flown by China Eastern Airlines and Xiamen Airlines, and are part of a 100-strong and 70-strong application for new routes submitted, respectively, by the two carriers. According to a Taiwanese official, these applications were currently “still under review.”
In an emailed statement from Xiamen Airlines, which urged the Taiwanese government to authorise the new routes, it states there are currently over 10,000 customers who have booked seats on flights which have yet to be approved. Demand for flights is currently at a high owing to the approaching Lunar New Year holiday.
The Civil Aviation Administration of China has condemned Taiwan’s actions, saying again there were no safety issues with the M503 route, while also warning Taiwan that it would “bear the consequences” of its decision. However, Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council said in a statement there were real safety risks for flights to Taiwan’s offshore islands, pushing for China to agree to holding technical talks on the issue.