Betting on "Taiwan independence" will only cost Eswatini its development opportunities: FM spokesperson

BEIJING, June 3 (Xinhua) -- Betting on "Taiwan independence" has no future and will only cost Eswatini its development opportunities, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Wednesday.

According to media in Africa and the Taiwan region, before and after Lai Ching-te's visit to Eswatini, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities provided the country with 25 billion or so New Taiwan dollars worth of funding, and pledged that the income of related project belongs entirely to the king and the royal family. Taiwan's representatives in Eswatini will also profit from that.

Mao said those reports are yet another example of how far the Lai Ching-te authorities would go to selfishly advance their "Taiwan independence" agenda.

Their expensive dollar diplomacy has cost the people of Taiwan dearly, equivalent to levying more than 1,000 New Taiwan dollars on every person in Taiwan, Mao said, adding that having Eswatini as a "diplomatic ally" is not about delivering real benefits for the people, but to line the pockets of the very few people who profit from it.

This is political theatrics steeped in greed and graft, Mao added.

Noting the one-China principle is a prevailing international consensus and a basic norm governing international relations, Mao cited China's zero-tariff treatment for all 53 African countries that have diplomatic relations with China, pointing out that Eswatini is the only country left in Africa with so-called "diplomatic ties" with Taiwan.

Betting on "Taiwan independence" has no future, and it will only cost Eswatini its development opportunities and land the country in international isolation, Mao said. Enditem