McDonald's apologises to China after describing a girl's nationality as Taiwan in controversial burger ad

  • Ad included a two-second clip of a student's ID that showed Taiwan as a country
  • Net users accused the fast food company of supporting Taiwan independence 
  • Egg McMuffin ad first aired in the self-ruled island on Jan 6 and has been pulled 
  • McDonald's said in an apology that it has always supported the one-China policy 

McDonald's has apologised to China after net users in the nation accused the fast-food company of supporting Taiwan independence in its latest advertisement. 

The television commercial for its Egg McMuffin, first aired in Taiwan on January 6, shows a two-second clip of a student's identity card that showed Taiwan as a country. 

Comments on Chinese social media on Monday accused McDonald's of violating Chinese law by supporting independence for Taiwan, which Beijing claims as part of its territory.

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McDonald's has apologised to China after net users accused the fast-food company of supporting Taiwan independence in its latest advertisement (above)

McDonald's has apologised to China after net users accused the fast-food company of supporting Taiwan independence in its latest advertisement (above)

McDonald's television commercial for its Egg McMuffin, first aired in Taiwan on January 6, shows a two-second clip of a student's identity card that showed Taiwan as a country

McDonald's television commercial for its Egg McMuffin, first aired in Taiwan on January 6, shows a two-second clip of a student's identity card that showed Taiwan as a country

Some called for a boycott of the restaurant chain. Others said McDonald's, whose mainland franchises are owned by a group that includes the Chinese Cabinet's investment arm, should be expelled from China.

'McDonald's this is what you want to do? Help Taiwan independence?' said a posting on Chinese microblogging site Weibo. 

'What is Taiwan? It's a province! The girl's nationality should be China,' another comment read.

McDonald's China apologised on Weibo on Saturday, saying the ad was directed by a Taiwanese agency and the commercial had been removed. 

McDonald's China apologised on Weibo on Saturday, saying the ad was directed by a Taiwanese agency and the commercial has been removed 

McDonald's China apologised on Weibo on Saturday, saying the ad was directed by a Taiwanese agency and the commercial has been removed 

'The advertising agency failed to carry out strict background checks on the video and caused a misunderstanding. We deeply regret this,' read the comment under a Global Times report on the incident. 

'We have always supported the one-China policy and we are determined to continue to uphold China's sovereignty and territorial integrity,' the statement added. 

Taiwan is a self-governing democratic island that Beijing considers to be a breakaway province to be reunited with the mainland, by force if necessary. 

Beijing has adopted a multi-pronged approach to diminish Taiwan's presence on the international stage in recent years, including blocking it from global forums and poaching its dwindling number of official diplomatic allies. 

A McDonald's in Yichang, Hubei province. The fast-food company has apologised for the ad

A McDonald's in Yichang, Hubei province. The fast-food company has apologised for the ad

Taiwan's independence-leaning President Tsai Ing-wen has made national defense a priority while refusing China's demand that she recognise Taiwan as a part of China. 

That has led to Beijing ratcheting up economic, military and diplomatic pressure on the island of 23 million. China has also pressured international corporations such as American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and the Marriott hotel chain to remove all references to Taiwan as a non-Chinese territory on their websites.

Last October, tens of thousands of Taiwan independence campaigners took to the streets in the first large-scale protest calling for an outright independence vote since the island first became a democracy more than 20 years ago. 

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