The South African government has told Taiwan that it must move its “liaison office” out of Pretoria.
Taiwan reportedly received the ultimatum earlier this month with speculation that Pretoria is acting under pressure from the Chinese government.
The South African government had been applying pressure on Taiwan to move its liaison office – which is a de facto embassy – since last year but it has now been told this must happen by the end of October. It would likely relocate to Johannesburg.
There has been speculation that Taiwan could retaliate against the gesture by making it harder for South Africans to get visas or by cutting the number of South Africans permitted to be employed as English teachers in the country.
The South African ultimatum is seen as yet another move by China in its attempts to deepen Taiwan’s isolation. Beijing regards Taiwan as an integral part of mainland China, though it is de facto independent, despite not being recognised officially by most countries around the world.
Earlier this year Lai Ching-te won the Taiwanese presidential election. Lai advocates for official Taiwanese independence which could further escalate tensions between China and Taiwan.
Earlier this month the Chinese military conducted exercises off the Taiwanese coast, which some observers believe could be a dry run for a full-scale invasion.