Gum ad pulled from airwaves for using the national anthem

American chewing gum manufacturer Wrigley has apologised and pulled a television commercial in Russia after China's Moscow embassy protested over the use of China's national anthem.

Wrigley's US headquarters said on Tuesday the company 'deeply regretted not recognising the source of the music' during the creation of the commercial, which was intended to 'humorously portray a mock diplomatic meeting, with no specific reference to a particular country or event'.

A spokesman with the company's China subsidiary said the commercial, which portrayed a fictitious female western leader mistaking an Asian-looking man as an official after he chewed some Wrigley's gum, lasted about 20 seconds and had The March of the Volunteers as its background music.

'The Wrigley Company offers its sincerest apology for any offence caused by the use of a portion of the Chinese national anthem in an Orbit White commercial produced and aired in Russia by Wrigley's Russian subsidiary,' the statement said. 'The Wrigley Company ... would never knowingly air an advertisement that could be interpreted as disrespectful to a country.'

The advert was brought to the attention of the Chinese embassy in Moscow last week when it learned at least three channels were airing a commercial that 'used China's national anthem and damaged China's dignity', the embassy said on its website.

The embassy contacted the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, relevant television stations and advertising agencies and demanded they 'realise the seriousness of the matter, pull the commercial immediately, make necessary explanations and guarantee similar incidents will not happen again'.