I was booked on their BR72 MXP-TPE flight due to depart on Apr 3rd and was told by their reservation office in Italy that it would be unlikely for them to start operating this route on Feb 18th as originally planned. There is alot of uncertainty and confusion as to when the flights may start operating out of Milan. What is certain is that the initial ban will be effective until the end of April, unless they manage to convince the Italian govt to limit the existing flight restrictions to mainland China and its special administrative regions only. That does sound unlikely though.
Despite there being no official travel advisory posted on their website and no getting help whatsoever from their FB and Twitter reps, a ticketing agent told me on the phone that cancellation fees and restrictions would be waived should I wish to cancel my confirmed ticket. I have submitted my request for refund this morning; fingers crossed.
The whole situation has been very frustrating and managed poorly by EVA Air. Would have expected better assistance and communication from such a reputable airline.
p.s. my original itinerary only involved layovers in Taiwan both outbound and inbound (MXP-TPE-NRT ICN-TPE-MXP), I hope that my refund request does not get dismissed on this ground. any input is welcome.