Taipei: Taiwan is contemplating imposing restrictions on semiconductor exports to South Africa following what it terms a "crude" downgrade of its diplomatic presence there, as announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Tuesday. The move comes in response to South Africa's recent actions affecting Taiwan's representative offices.

According to Focus Taiwan, Philippe Yen, director-general for MOFA's Department of West Asian and African Affairs, disclosed during a news briefing that discussions are underway with relevant government agencies to explore possible countermeasures, including the limitation of chip exports to South Africa. Yen clarified that specific details regarding the types of chips and the duration of any potential restrictions have yet to be determined.

Yen urged the South African government to reconsider its actions and engage in discussions with Taiwan to settle the matter amicably. Despite Taiwan's status as a leading producer of advanced semiconductors, it is not a major supplier to South Africa.

The proposed measures follow South Africa's official notice on July 21, which formalized the renaming of Taiwan's diplomatic missions to the "Taipei Commercial Office in Johannesburg" and the "Taipei Commercial Office in Cape Town." The South African government justified the renaming and downgrading of Taiwan's offices based on its "one China" policy and United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758, while also calling for the relocation of Taiwan's representative office out of Pretoria.

Taiwan currently operates a representative office in Pretoria, known as the Taipei Liaison Office in the Republic of South Africa, and another office in Cape Town. Despite the lack of formal diplomatic relations, operations at these offices remain unaffected, according to Yen.

MOFA perceives South Africa's decision, which occurred soon after South African Vice President Paul Mashatile's visit to China in mid-July, as a reflection of increased pressure from Beijing. Before July, South Africa had twice requested Taiwan to relocate its representative office from Pretoria to Johannesburg, a move MOFA criticizes as part of Beijing's efforts to further isolate Taiwan internationally.

Since October 2024, Taiwan has been urging South Africa to enter negotiations, but these efforts have yet to yield results. In March, the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) altered the name of Taiwan's office in Pretoria on its website to "Taipei Commercial Office," categorizing it under "international organizations."

In defense of its decision, DIRCO issued a statement describing the relocation and rebranding of the Taipei office as "standard diplomatic practice" and an accurate representation of the nonpolitical and nondiplomatic nature of the relationship between South Africa and Taiwan.