South Africa Asks Taiwan to Relocate de Facto Embassy out of the Capital

Published on October 19, 2024

Taiwan has been asked to move its de facto embassy out of Pretoria, South Africa’s government confirmed on Friday following accusations that it was bowing to pressure from Beijing. In a statement published on Friday, South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) said Taiwan’s Liaison Office will be rebranded as a Trade Office, and that it will relocate from the South African capital of Pretoria to Johannesburg, which the department called the country’s economic hub. DIRCO said because South Africa has no formal diplomatic tie with Taiwan, the move was to “correct this anomaly” of having the Taiwan office in the capital city. The new arrangement “will be a true reflection of the non-political and non-diplomatic nature of the relationship between the Republic of South Africa and Taiwan.”...

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