TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – French luxury brand Christian Dior apologized to China after it excluded Taiwan from the country’s map at a university presentation in the city of Hangzhou, reports said Thursday (Oct. 17).

Dior forms part of LVMH Moët Hennessy - Louis Vuitton, the fashion and drinks empire controlled by France’s wealthiest person, Bernard Arnault. The map appeared on a screen at Zhejiang Gongshang University during a presentation by Dior about its boutiques on Wednesday (Oct. 16), Reuters news agency reported.

Because of an “issue” with the map, Dior’s Shanghai office produced an apology and said it was investigating the incident. “Dior always respects and upholds the one China principle, strictly safeguards China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and treasures the feelings of the Chinese people,” Reuters translated the original Chinese-language statement as saying.

The luxury goods company described the map incident as an “incorrect statement and misrepresentation made by a Dior staff member,” according to Reuters. 

Over the past few years, China has become more aggressive in its treatment of multinational corporations, demanding they drop all references to Taiwan as a separate country from their websites.