Beijing policy could flip Swaziland allegiance<\/b>
\nTaiwan\u2019s leaders fear China\u2019s pledge of $60 billion in assistance to Africa is a move to poach Swaziland, its last remaining diplomatic ally from the continent.
Top Taiwanese officials are striving to improve ties with Swaziland as they are concerned that China\u2019s colossal investment will pressure the tiny nation.
\u201cThe ministry will keep a close eye on the issue, while doing our best to strengthen our relations with the African nation,\u201d said a Taiwanese official to local media. \u201cI believe our ties with Swaziland are strong at the moment.\u201d
Beijing has a history of repeatedly calling on Swaziland to change its diplomatic recognition of Taiwan, according to Taiwanese media.
Chinese President Xi\u2019s pledge of $60 billion to Africa includes aid, investment, loans, government assistance, and infrastructure.
\u201cChina\u2019s investment in Africa comes with no political strings attached,\u201d said Xi. \u201cChina does not interfere in Africa\u2019s internal affairs and does not impose its own will on Africa.\u201d
That \u201cstrings\u201d claim is also Xi\u2019s denial that his country engaging in \u201cdebt trap\u201d diplomacy as Africa is already \u201coverloaded\u201d with Chinese debt.
Xi delivered his pledge to African leaders during Monday\u2019s Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).
South Africa\u2019s President, Cyril Ramaphosa, also attended FOCAC and used the platform to blast critics who were concerned with China engaging in \u201cnew colonialism\u201d of the continent by saying China\u2019s development aid actually \u201crefutes the view that a new colonialism is taking hold in Africa, as our detractors would have us believe.\u201d
It is important to note that Swaziland is almost entirely surrounded by South Africa except for its eastern side.
Correspondingly, China and South Africa have recently strengthened military ties to maintain \u201cinternational and regional security and stability.\u201d
Furthermore, Taiwan saw a peculiar hit against its sovereign status after major US airlines caved to China\u2019s demand to change how they list Taiwan as an independent country.<\/p>\n

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