Taiwan Postpones Lai's Eswatini Visit After Three Countries Revoke Charter Overflight Permits

Taiwan's Presidential Office announced Tuesday evening that President Lai Ching-te would not proceed with his state visit to the Kingdom of Eswatini, scheduled to begin April 22, after the Seychelles, Mauritius, and Madagascar revoked permission for his charter aircraft to cross their territories. The three countries "canceled the flight permits for the president's charter plane without prior notice or justification," the office said in a statement released less than 24 hours before the scheduled departure.

Presidential Secretary-General Pan Men-an, who was to travel with the delegation, announced the postponement at an impromptu press conference. He attributed the revocations to Beijing.

"The real reason behind their decisions was intense pressure from the authorities in China, including economic coercion."

Pan described the action as unprecedented. A special envoy, whom the office did not name, will represent Lai at ceremonies in Mbabane.

What the trip was for

The Presidential Office's April 13 announcement framed the April 22–27 delegation around three themes: construction of a strategic oil reserve facility in Eswatini; a Taiwan Industrial Innovation Park leveraging Eswatini's membership in the Southern African Customs Union and the African Continental Free Trade Area; and deployment of smart-medicine and telemedicine systems. The visit was timed to coincide with the 58th anniversary of Taiwan–Eswatini diplomatic relations, the 40th anniversary of King Mswati III's accession, and the king's 58th birthday.

The delegation was to include Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung and Deputy Foreign Minister François Chihchung Wu. It would have been Lai's first trip abroad since November 2024, when he visited Pacific allies Marshall Islands, Tuvalu, and Palau on a tour that included a stopover in Hawaii.

The overflight blockade

A chartered flight from Taipei to Mbabane crosses multiple third-country airspaces in Asia, the Indian Ocean, and southern Africa. The three countries that withdrew permission — the Seychelles, Mauritius, and Madagascar — sit along the southern Indian Ocean basin segment of the likely route. None of the three maintains formal diplomatic relations with Taipei; all recognize the People's Republic of China. Charter aircraft carrying heads of state require explicit overflight clearance from every country on the route, and revoking a previously-granted permit at short notice makes it impossible to finalize a safe flight plan.

The Presidential Office said the original permits had been granted and were then rescinded "unexpectedly and without justification."

What remains

Eswatini, a landlocked southern African kingdom of roughly 1.2 million people, is the sole remaining African country to maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. It is one of 12 countries worldwide — the Vatican, Paraguay, Guatemala, Belize, Haiti, three Caribbean states, and three Pacific island nations — that recognize the Republic of China over the People's Republic. That count is down from more than 20 a decade ago, with Nauru switching recognition to Beijing in January 2024 and Honduras doing the same in 2023.

The Presidential Office called the interference "crude and coercive" and "blatant interference in the internal affairs of other nations":

"Taiwan is a Taiwan of the world, and the 23 million people of Taiwan have every right to engage with the world. No country has the right to obstruct Taiwan."

In a Facebook post Tuesday evening, Lai wrote that "no threat or suppression can change Taiwan's determination to engage with the world, nor can it negate Taiwan's ability to contribute to the international community."