The Vietnamese government banned the distribution of the popular film Barbieas it features a map showing disputed Chinese territorial claims in the South China Sea, state media reported.
The newspaper Vietnam Express and other media said that the posters advertising Barbie had been removed from film distributors’ websites on Monday after the ruling. The film starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling and directed by Greta Gerwig was set to hit theaters on July 21 in Vietnam.
Reports quote Vi Kien Thanh, director general of Vietnam’s Film Department, as saying the National Film Rating Board made the decision. He said a map in the film shows China’s “nine-dash line”, which extends Beijing’s territorial claims far into waters that fall within areas claimed by Vietnam and other countries.
The “nine-dash line” is an obscure but sensitive issue for China and its neighbors, which shows that Beijing’s maritime border extends into areas claimed by other governments and encompasses most of the Sea of Southern China. This brought tense clashes with the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations – Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines – with Chinese fishing boats and military vessels becoming more aggressive in contested waters.
Asked about the issue at a daily briefing on Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said: “China’s position on the South China Sea issue is clear. and consistent.
“We believe relevant countries should not link the South China Sea issue with normal cultural and people-to-people exchanges,” she added.
Warner Bros offices were closed on Tuesday due to Independence Day.
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