Taiwan Rejects South Africa’s Demand to Move de Facto Embassy From Capital

Taiwan’s foreign ministry said it has protested South Africa’s request while preparing for the ‘worst-case scenario.’

Taiwan's Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung answers questions from media during an international press briefing in Taipei on July 19, 2024. I-hwa Cheng/AFP via Getty Images

Taiwan’s foreign ministry said on Oct. 22 it has refused to move Taipei’s de facto embassy out of South Africa’s capital, Pretoria.

South Africa’s foreign ministry, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, confirmed on Oct. 18 that it had requested Taiwan to rebrand the Taipei Liaison Office as a trade office and relocate from Pretoria to Johannesburg, which the department called the country’s economic hub.