China yesterday said Eswatini's leaders were being "kept and fed" by Taiwan, using unusually strong language to condemn the small southern African kingdom for hosting President William Lai (賴清德).
China and Taiwan have long traded accusations of "dollar diplomacy" to win support from developing countries.
Beijing's latest criticism came after Lai returned home on Tuesday from a surprise trip to the former Swaziland, one of Taiwan’s 12 diplomatic allies.
Photo courtesy of the Presidential Office
The Presidential Office said China had forced three Indian Ocean nations — the Seychelles, Mauritius and Madagascar — to deny overflight permission for his aircraft when he first planned to visit Eswatini last month for celebrations marking the 40th anniversary of King Mswati III’s accession to the throne and his 58th birthday.
Lai had "stowed away" to get to Eswatini, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Lin Jian (林劍) said.
This showed that "separatist" activities were rejected by the international community and were a "scandal and a farce," he told reporters in Beijing.
"Some politicians in Eswatini, kept and fed by Taiwan, have provided space for Taiwan independence forces — this runs counter to the tide of history, and China strongly condemns it," Lin added, using a derogatory expression used to refer to a person being kept in servitude to another or used as a lackey.
Acting Eswatini government spokeswoman Thabile Mdluli said that the remarks were "deeply unfortunate and fall short of the standards expected in respectful international discourse.”
“It is especially concerning when statements of this nature come from a country that positions itself as a responsible global actor," Mdluli said.
"Eswatini must not be bullied and our sovereign decisions ought to be respected by all," she added.
Taipei has been in celebratory mood after Lai made it to Eswatini and then returned via a circuitous route skirting airspace controlled by Mauritius and Madagascar.
Instead of traveling on a plane chartered from Taiwan's China Airlines, as originally planned in line with usual practice, Lai flew on the king's private A340 aircraft.
The trip further deepened the friendship between Taiwan and Eswatini, Lai yesterday told a regular weekly meeting of his Democratic Progressive Party.
Despite China's "blockade and suppression," Taiwan "will surely advance steadily onto the international stage" as long as it remains unyielding and united and works hand in hand with like-minded partners, Lai added.
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