Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung successfully reached the African nation of Eswatini over the weekend, declaring that Taiwan would not be deterred by “authoritarian forces” following allegations that China pressured multiple countries to deny flight access to President Lai Ching-te’s planned diplomatic mission.
The diplomatic controversy began last week when three African nations – the Seychelles, Mauritius, and Madagascar – withdrew previously granted overflight permissions for Taiwan’s presidential aircraft heading to Eswatini, which remains one of Taiwan’s dozen remaining diplomatic partners worldwide.
This incident represents an unprecedented situation where a Taiwanese president was forced to cancel an entire international visit due to denied airspace access, suggesting Beijing may be employing new tactics to restrict Taiwan’s global diplomatic activities.
Sharing his arrival on social media late Saturday, Lin posted an image of himself disembarking from a private aircraft in the small southern African nation, previously called Swaziland.
“In that moment, I felt the deep friendship between Taiwan and Eswatini that transcends distance, and I became even more convinced that Taiwan will not be held back by authoritarian forces,” he wrote. “We will certainly step out onto the world stage.”
While Beijing has denied applying pressure on the three African countries, Chinese officials nonetheless commended their decision to block the flight permissions.
Lin provided limited information about his journey, stating only that his team “overcame all obstacles” to reach Eswatini as President Lai’s special representative for King Mswati III’s 40th anniversary celebration of his rise to power.
Beijing maintains that Taiwan, despite its democratic governance, constitutes a Chinese province without legitimate claims to sovereign status. Taiwan’s leadership disputes these assertions and maintains its right to conduct international relations.
The situation has drawn criticism from Washington, while the European Union, along with Britain, France, and Germany, have also voiced their concerns about the incident.
