- Former NBA star Dwight Howard is getting backlash in China for calling Taiwan a country.
- China claims Taiwan as part of its territory, and does not recognize it as an independent country.
Former NBA star Dwight Howard called Taiwan a country, and now he's facing backlash in China.
In a promotional video with Taiwan's vice president Lai Ching-te, Howard — who now plays for a local Taiwanese basketball league — said, "Since I came to Taiwan, I've gained a whole new appreciation of this country."
The otherwise-benign video was intended to promote a contest where the winner gets to spend a night in Taiwan's presidential office, but Howard calling Taiwan a country is angering some people in China. The Chinese government views Taiwan not as an independent country but as part of its territory.
The short video has caused the hashtag "Howard Taiwan independence" to trend on Chinese social media, with more than 400 million views on Weibo just since Thursday night, according to the BBC.
One Weibo account in China, where basketball is widely popular, wrote, "Is he crazy? The promotional video has obvious Taiwan independence characters, how could he agree to do it...," the BBC reported.
Vice President Lai also referred to Taiwan as a "free country" in the video.
During an event in Yilan County on Friday, Howard apologized to reporters, saying there was a "communication barrier," CNN reported.
"If I offended anyone in China, I apologize," Howard said, CNN reported. "It was not my intention to harm anyone with what I said in the commercial."
"I am not a politician. I don't want to get involved in any politics," he added, according to CNN. "I have the utmost respect for Chinese people and utmost respect for Taiwanese people, so it was never my intent to disrespect nobody."