President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) met with Special Envoy Thulisile Dladla of Eswatini on Thursday, April 30, where Dladla underscored the closeness of Taiwan-Eswatini relations. The meeting was also attended by Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍), who noted that Dladla’s comments further reflected the ironclad friendship between the two countries he saw during his visit to the country last month.

The meeting was a mirror of last week, when Lin visited Eswatini as President Lai’s special envoy to personally congratulate King Mswati III. Lin said Dladla’s visit, now as the King’s special envoy, sends a strong message of friendship despite the physical distance between the two countries.

The president’s trip to Eswatini, Taiwan’s only African ally, was cancelled last month after three countries revoked overflight permissions allegedly under pressure from China the day before his departure. In the meeting, President Lai again emphasized that Taiwan is a sovereign nation with the right to engage with other countries of the world.

Dladla stressed that shortly after the Presidential Office announced its change of plans, King Mswati III urged her to visit Taiwan to deliver a message and express thanks for sending Lai. She said Lin’s presence at the celebrations made a difference, although King Mswati III still hopes that Lai will visit one day. She said, “You must come and visit the Kingdom to show the world that the airspace is free, the airspace is independent, and that Africa as a whole believes and has got a lot of confidence in international law."

Lin said he was deeply moved by Dladla’s emphasis that Taiwan and Eswatini are “like family,” saying that it fully reflected his experience on his trip last month. He said that although Taiwan’s diplomatic situation may face a challenging road ahead, it will carry on even when faced with overt obstruction. Lin emphasized that Taiwan and Eswatini will continue to deepen diplomatic ties for the goals of mutual prosperity.