The South African Foreign Ministry has asked Taiwan to move its unofficial embassy out of their capital, Pretoria, within a six month timeframe. Ministry representatives said it will be moved to Johannesburg, South Africa’s commercial capital, and renamed from “Taipei Liaison Office” to “Taipei’s Trade Office.”
During an interview on Monday, Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said that this amounts to a unilateral breach of an agreement signed between Taiwan and South Africa in 1997. The agreement stipulates that, despite the end of official diplomatic ties between the two nations, Taiwan will continue to operate a liaison office in Pretoria. It was signed ahead of the establishment of official relations between China and South Africa in 1998.
Lin stressed the Foreign Ministry will make every effort to defend Taiwan’s rights and interests. He said he has established a contingency team and intends to initiate negotiations between the two governments.
Regarding the Ministry’s progress on its foreign policy goals for the Lai administration, Lin said that the Ministry is actively cooperating with like-minded countries such as the United States to provide assistance to friendly countries throughout the Pacific region and in Latin America under a “one plus one equals three” cooperation model. He added that this model is not limited to countries with diplomatic relations and includes countries throughout central and eastern Europe, as well as the Philippines.