Taiwan’s President Lai Invited to Attend King Mswati’s Coronation Anniversary

Africa’s only ally to Taiwan could soon roll out the red carpet to receive Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te who has not travelled out of his country for a long time.

Taiwan government said it has received an invitation from Eswatini for President Lai Ching-te to attend celebrations marking King Mswati III’s birthday and coronation anniversary, a potential overseas trip that would be Lai’s first in more than a year.

“Our government has received an invitation from the government of Eswatini,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hsiao Kuang-wei said in a message.

“If the President has any related plans, the Presidential Office will make an appropriate public announcement in due course.”

Eswatini maintains a solid, 50-year-plus diplomatic relationship with Taiwan, serving as its only remaining ally in Africa as of 2026.

Despite pressure from Beijing to shift allegiance, Eswatini has reaffirmed its commitment to Taipei.

Most African countries switched recognition after China edged Taiwan out of its permanent seat on the UN Security Council in 1971. Quite a few holdouts remained on Taiwan’s side, but they steadily abandoned it.

Elsewhere across the globe, Taiwan’s diplomacy has also been in retreat and only 18 countries now recognise it.

Most are minute Pacific island states like Kiribati, Nauru, Palau and Tuvalu – which Beijing evidently has its sights on too as part of its strategy to expand its maritime footprint.

Taiwan’s allies also still include a few larger, yet authoritarian, nations like Nicaragua and Guatemala. Plus the Vatican, interestingly.