President Lai visits Eswatini; Lee Yi-yang: Taiwan has the right to walk into the world
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te visited Eswatini, a diplomatic ally in Africa, asserting Taiwan's right to engage with the international community despite Chinese interference. Representative Lee Yi-yang emphasized Taiwan's potential for a 'golden decade' in the AI industry and called for strengthened cooperation with democratic nations.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 3, 2026 at 13:23
- 🔍 Collected: May 3, 2026 at 13:31 (8 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 3, 2026 at 13:45 (13 min after Collected)
Central News Agency
(Central News Agency reporter Dai Ya-zhen in Tokyo on May 3rd) President Lai Ching-te arrived in Eswatini, a diplomatic ally in Africa, to begin his visit. Representative to Japan Lee Yi-yang pointed out that President Lai, with unparalleled determination and action, overcame China's intervention and obstruction, and Taiwan once again demonstrated to the world its unyielding and principled philosophy and actions. Justice will surely be upheld, and China's unreasonable suppression of hegemony will be defeated. 'Taiwan has proven to the international community that we have the right to walk into the world.'
Lee Yi-yang stated via Facebook that President Lai's scheduled trip was forced to be postponed due to China's pressure on multiple African countries to cancel flight permits. Considering the flight safety of the head of state and the delegation, Taiwan adjusted the itinerary and successfully departed.
He emphasized that China's action brazenly interfered with international civil aviation order, threatened flight safety, and was an open interference in the internal affairs of other countries, undermining international peace and stability. The international community will not sit idly by while flight safety becomes a tool for China to threaten other countries.
Lee Yi-yang said that major countries including Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Canada, as well as diplomatic allies Paraguay and Saint Kitts and Nevis, have publicly supported Taiwan, believing that China should not use international civil aviation as a tool for political pressure.
He also mentioned that the youth bureau of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, led by Director Shoniro Hiranuma, visited Taiwan and immediately voiced support for Taiwan through social media. Hiranuma Shoniro posted on X, stating that China's use of intimidation to force third countries to change their sovereign judgment is absolutely unacceptable.
Lee Yi-yang pointed out that the LDP Youth Bureau has been dedicated to promoting Taiwan-Japan exchanges for more than 50 years and is regarded as a cradle for Japanese political leaders, having nurtured several prime ministers including Taro Aso, Shinzo Abe, and Fumio Kishida, which has a profound impact on the development of Taiwan-Japan relations.
Lee Yi-yang also stated that Taiwan's stock market capitalization has ranked sixth globally. Compared with the G7, it has surpassed the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, and Italy. Among G7 countries, its scale is second only to the United States and Japan, demonstrating Taiwan's important position in the global economic system.
He emphasized that as the artificial intelligence (AI) wave sweeps across the globe, Taiwan plays a key role in hardware manufacturing fields such as AI chips, servers, advanced packaging, and silicon photonics, and is expected to usher in a 'golden decade' for the high-tech industry in the future.
Lee Yi-yang said that in the face of continuous political and economic pressure from China, Taiwan will continue to deepen cooperation with democratic partners such as Japan and the United States to jointly maintain a 'free and open Indo-Pacific' and ensure regional peace and prosperity. (Edited by Hsieh Yi-hsuan) 1150503
(Central News Agency reporter Dai Ya-zhen in Tokyo on May 3rd) President Lai Ching-te arrived in Eswatini, a diplomatic ally in Africa, to begin his visit. Representative to Japan Lee Yi-yang pointed out that President Lai, with unparalleled determination and action, overcame China's intervention and obstruction, and Taiwan once again demonstrated to the world its unyielding and principled philosophy and actions. Justice will surely be upheld, and China's unreasonable suppression of hegemony will be defeated. 'Taiwan has proven to the international community that we have the right to walk into the world.'
Lee Yi-yang stated via Facebook that President Lai's scheduled trip was forced to be postponed due to China's pressure on multiple African countries to cancel flight permits. Considering the flight safety of the head of state and the delegation, Taiwan adjusted the itinerary and successfully departed.
He emphasized that China's action brazenly interfered with international civil aviation order, threatened flight safety, and was an open interference in the internal affairs of other countries, undermining international peace and stability. The international community will not sit idly by while flight safety becomes a tool for China to threaten other countries.
Lee Yi-yang said that major countries including Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Canada, as well as diplomatic allies Paraguay and Saint Kitts and Nevis, have publicly supported Taiwan, believing that China should not use international civil aviation as a tool for political pressure.
He also mentioned that the youth bureau of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, led by Director Shoniro Hiranuma, visited Taiwan and immediately voiced support for Taiwan through social media. Hiranuma Shoniro posted on X, stating that China's use of intimidation to force third countries to change their sovereign judgment is absolutely unacceptable.
Lee Yi-yang pointed out that the LDP Youth Bureau has been dedicated to promoting Taiwan-Japan exchanges for more than 50 years and is regarded as a cradle for Japanese political leaders, having nurtured several prime ministers including Taro Aso, Shinzo Abe, and Fumio Kishida, which has a profound impact on the development of Taiwan-Japan relations.
Lee Yi-yang also stated that Taiwan's stock market capitalization has ranked sixth globally. Compared with the G7, it has surpassed the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, and Italy. Among G7 countries, its scale is second only to the United States and Japan, demonstrating Taiwan's important position in the global economic system.
He emphasized that as the artificial intelligence (AI) wave sweeps across the globe, Taiwan plays a key role in hardware manufacturing fields such as AI chips, servers, advanced packaging, and silicon photonics, and is expected to usher in a 'golden decade' for the high-tech industry in the future.
Lee Yi-yang said that in the face of continuous political and economic pressure from China, Taiwan will continue to deepen cooperation with democratic partners such as Japan and the United States to jointly maintain a 'free and open Indo-Pacific' and ensure regional peace and prosperity. (Edited by Hsieh Yi-hsuan) 1150503