Taiwan Mulls Chip Export Controls Over South Africa’s Downgrading of De Facto Embassy

Its foreign ministry has indicated that it will go beyond protesting and retaliate if South Africa doesn’t engage with Taiwan to resolve the dispute.

Taiwan's liaison office in the suburb of Hatfield in Pretoria, South Africa, on Oct. 22, 2024. Phill Magakoe/AFP via Getty Images

Taiwan is considering export controls on chips in response to South Africa’s unilateral downgrading of Taipei’s de facto embassy, its Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said on July 29.

In a notice published on July 21, the South African government formalized its downgrading of Taipei’s liaison offices to commercial offices, citing “South Africa’s commitment to the One China Policy” and U.N. General Assembly Resolution 2758, which it says “recognises the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the sole legitimate representative of China.”