China urges citizens to leave Taiwan ally Eswatini amid security warnings

BEIJING — China has told its citizens to immediately leave Eswatini, citing security risks in the African nation that is one of Taiwan's few remaining diplomatic allies. China claims Taiwan is part of its territory and opposes the self-governed island's attempts at international exchange. Taiwan's president Lai Ching-te travelled to Eswatini in May, with Taipei accusing Beijing of trying to derail the trip by pressuring nearby countries to revoke overflight permits. The consular affairs department of China's foreign ministry said on Tuesday that "Chinese nationals and institutions already in the country should evacuate as soon as possible or relocate to relatively safer areas such as South Africa." The ministry cited "rampant cyber fraud and online gambling criminal activities" as among the ongoing security concerns. "Those who insist on travelling to or remaining in the area will face extremely high security risks, and the timeliness of receiving consular assistance may be affected," the department said in a statement shared to social media platform WeChat. The Eswatini government on We

Eswatini linked the move to a law enforcement operation targeting foreign nationals, mostly from China, for suspected cyber-related criminal activity.

Eswatini is one of 12 countries, and the only one in Africa, that has diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

China is urging its citizens to evacuate Eswatini and warning others not to visit the tiny African kingdom over what it said were safety concerns and scamming risks in Taiwan’s last remaining diplomatic partner on the continent.

China has told its citizens to immediately leave Eswatini, citing security risks in the African nation that is one of Taiwan’s few remaining diplomatic allies. China claims Taiwan is part of its territory and opposes the self-governed island’s attempts at international exchange. Taiwan’s president Lai Ching-te travelled to Eswatini in May, with Taipei accusing Beijing […]