Taipei: President Lai Ching-te has suspended his planned visit to Eswatini, Taiwan's only ally in Africa, Presidential Office Secretary-General Pan Men-an said Tuesday, less than a day before the president was scheduled to depart on the five-day trip.

According to Focus Taiwan, Pan stated at an impromptu news conference that the Presidential Office had no choice but to suspend the visit due to "economic coercion" by China. This would have been Lai's second overseas trip since taking office on May 20, 2024.

The suspension arose after Seychelles, Mauritius, and Madagascar, which are along the flight path of the chartered plane that Lai, his national security team, and the press corps were scheduled to take, "unexpectedly and without justification rescinded overflight permission," Pan explained. He did not confirm whether a new date would be considered for the trip but characterized China's move as "unprecedented."

President Lai had previously visited diplomatic allies in the Pacific in late 2024, including the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu, and Palau, with transit stops in the U.S. state of Hawaii and the U.S. territory of Guam.