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News & Current Events Apr 21, 2026 at 1:17 PM

Taiwan president Ching-te has been forced to cancel his Eswatini visit after three countries along the flight route withdrew permission for him to fly over their territories amid pressure from China

Posted by WayOutbackBoy

Taiwan president postpones Eswatini visit and says China pressured African countries
WRAL.com
Taiwan president postpones Eswatini visit and says China pressured African countries
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan’s president postponed a visit to Africa this week when three countries withdrew permission for him to fly over their territories after pressure from China, his office said Tuesday.
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tsrich Apr 21, 2026 +575
What if he just flew commercial?
575
frostwonder Apr 21, 2026 +290
I just googled the flight, 2 layovers and 45 hours.
290
[deleted] Apr 21, 2026 +38
[deleted]
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frostwonder Apr 21, 2026 +45
Security concerns aside, just the optics of a head of state taking a 90 hrs/4 days round-trip flight (excluding actual stays and visits) for.......eswatini is probably not that great. Just looks a tad bit desperate you know?
45
justwalk1234 Apr 22, 2026 +9
When there’s only a handful of countries recognising you, you can put in a little effort
9
amorphouscloud Apr 22, 2026 +2
The security issues alone make this ridiculous idea a no go.
2
KingBubzVI Apr 21, 2026 +50
In today’s economy?
50
Starfox-sf Apr 21, 2026 +23
Zero leg room.
23
justwalk1234 Apr 22, 2026 +9
He's the president! surely he could claim economy **plus** on expenses.
9
3BlindMice1 Apr 21, 2026 +11
He'd probably find himself arrested for treason to the nation of China somewhere along the way
11
KderNacht Apr 22, 2026 +2
Heads of state don't fly commercial. Heads of provinces, however...
2
Livid-Bicycle-3715 Apr 22, 2026 +4
Singaporean prime minister seen taking budget airlines to state visit… https://www.asiaone.com/singapore/felt-home-pm-wong-receives-cheers-he-boards-scoot-flight-laos-singapore
4
Infodataplace Apr 21, 2026 +1877
imagine being told your flight is cancelled not because of weather or technical issues, but geopolitics halfway across the map… like “sorry, airspace unavailable due to… reasons” it’s kinda absurd how indirect this is, no confrontation, just a bunch of quiet “nope”s along the route and that’s enough feels less like diplomacy and more like someone slowly closing doors in a hallway until there’s nowhere left to walk
1877
SlimDiscipline-69 Apr 21, 2026 +527
... I feel like a solid argument could be made that this is diplomatic warfare
527
andrew_1515 Apr 21, 2026 +230
A sign of things to come as China fills more of the power vacuum the US has left
230
bla60ah Apr 21, 2026 +106
China has been on the path to forcibly take over Taiwan for over a decade
106
Zombie_Cool Apr 21, 2026 +77
Yes but many are worried that once quiet steps are becoming brazen strides towards the finish line.
77
Explosion1850 Apr 21, 2026 +42
The farther China can push the envelope without getting any pushback from the world community, the more China will continue to push still farther
42
wggn Apr 21, 2026 +19
as long as Taiwan dominates the microchip industry, China can't do anything without blowing up the world economy for years to come
19
blueSGL Apr 21, 2026 +16
Those fabs require very precise conditions to keep them running. They going to be made inoperable if China invades no way Taiwan is going to hand them over.
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wggn Apr 21, 2026 +14
Exactly. and without those fabs, there will be massive chip shortages for many years. Which means also massive shortages of any product that uses chips.
14
Final_Interaction391 Apr 22, 2026 +4
Which is to the advantage of China, they can even the playing field.
4
SnooPuppers8698 Apr 21, 2026 +8
the power vacuum in africa the US left?
8
samariius Apr 22, 2026 +6
Yes..? Has to be bait, right?
6
Enhydra67 Apr 21, 2026 +26
Jumping into the top comments but realistically what would happen if they just did it anyways? Also as another comment asked: what if they were to fly commercial?
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Eclipsed830 Apr 21, 2026 +38
Flying commercial from Taiwan to Eswatini... do you know how many layovers there would be? lol Probably Taiwan to UAE, UAE to SA, SA to Eswatini.
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GoldenMew Apr 21, 2026 +14
Flying to the UAE is not a great idea right now
14
invariantspeed Apr 21, 2026 +244
Except it’s not geopolitics across the map. It’s their neighbor country that asserts sovereignty over them.
244
MAGAHATESTHEUSA Apr 21, 2026 +41
Were the three countries neighbors too?
41
sw4ffles Apr 21, 2026 +56
Mauritius, Seychelles and Madagascar.
56
InsanelyAverageFella Apr 21, 2026 +24
If it's these 3 countries, is there no other route to take to avoid their airspace? Even if not as direct and requiring some sort of maneuvering?
24
DeAndre_ROY_Ayton Apr 21, 2026 +17
Good chance their jets don’t have the extra fuel, it’s a really calculated thing.
17
ltjpunk387 Apr 21, 2026 +9
Ironic considering the original inhabitants of Madagascar were indigenous Austronesian Taiwanese from thousands of years ago.
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Anaud-E-Moose Apr 21, 2026 +6
All islands? how hard can it be to reach southern continental Africa from east asia while avoiding 3 islands, 2 of them being tiny ones.
6
TotoCocoAndBeaks Apr 21, 2026 +7
Except the route might have been chosen after chinese pressure to other regions, and any new route can be subject to the same thing also
7
readher Apr 22, 2026 +3
Surely, France isn't so weak as to refuse landing on Reunion due to Chinese pressure?
3
sofixa11 Apr 21, 2026 +26
To be fair, the Republic of China (aka Taiwan) asserts sovereignty over the People's Republic of China (the ones actually ruling Mainland China). It's just that one side won the civil war and is massive so everyone cares for them, while the other lost and is much smaller, so almost nobody recognises them. Nowadays Taiwan is de facto a separate independent country, but de jure they still claim all of China. And they cannot change that because the PRC would consider it as seccession.
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case-o-nuts Apr 21, 2026 +20
China has threatened them with war if Taiwan drops their claim over mainland China.
20
Hornberger_ Apr 22, 2026 +5
Taiwan cannot renounce it claims over mainland, as that would be the de facto recognition of China and Taiwan as separate country, and would be treated by PRC as a declaration of independence. Taiwan is forced by China to maintain the charade.
5
debacol Apr 21, 2026 +8
I mean, given Taiwan's geographical location to China, this isn't "halfway" across the map. Its basically right over your fence.
8
1sttimeverbaldiarrhe Apr 21, 2026 +19
I think by now Taiwan is used to it - been happening since the '70/80s and Taiwan has thrived in spite of it.
19
LiKaSing_RealEstate Apr 22, 2026 +10
The scales only really tipped in 2000s. Taiwan started with the international recognition and UNSC seat, was the one flying planes deep into China, enforcing a naval blockade.
10
Aggravating-Coast335 Apr 21, 2026 +24
Fact is China was super poor back in the 70/80s. It was the other way around then. Taiwan was the one acting like a bully at that time
24
[deleted] Apr 21, 2026 +11
[deleted]
11
just_spawned_again Apr 21, 2026 +11
There probably is no better time for China to take Taiwan if not now. US is busy in Iran, and Trump can be easily threatened, or bribed.
11
IClop2Fluttershy4206 Apr 21, 2026 +3
this generations a bunch of soft cowards
3
Aerottawa Apr 21, 2026 +63
As long as South Africa didn't withdraw permission, couldn't the plane just circumvent those countries? Especially Mauritius.
63
bigdatabro Apr 21, 2026 +27
I'm not sure if that flight would be geographically possible. If you look at the map between Taiwan and Eswatini, they'd either have to fly over China itself (not an option) or make a huge loop over the southern Indian ocean, doubling the flight distance. If they make a stop in Perth Australia, the distance goes from 7,000 km to 15,000 km, and many private jets don't have the fuel capacity for that long stretch without refueling. [https://www.distance.to/TPE/Eswatini](https://www.distance.to/TPE/Eswatini) [https://www.distance.to/TPE/Perth,Western-Australia,AUS/Eswatini](https://www.distance.to/TPE/Perth,Western-Australia,AUS/Eswatini)
27
ApocalyptoSoldier Apr 22, 2026 +3
We've folded to pressure from China before. Also eSwatini is pretty much surrounded by South Africa so I think if you have the fuel to reach South Africa you could just go straight to your destination instead, unless maybe they flew over the Pacific
3
alwaysrecession Apr 21, 2026 +158
What happens if he still flies through?
158
phil_the_builder Apr 21, 2026 +275
To violate the airspaces of a foreign nation could be very bad. They would probably send their airforce to redirect them back out, and the diplomatic fallout would be severe.
275
Otterfan Apr 21, 2026 +102
I think in this case the threat is more diplomatic than military. Seychelles has no aircraft other than a few A320s and Twin Otters they use to shuffle tourists around. Madagascar has four working helicopters, and Mauritius has a few helicopters and some turboprop transport planes. To my knowledge, none of them have any air-to-air missiles to speak of.
102
KGB_cutony Apr 21, 2026 +105
No sane country will shoot them down. But it's still an invasion, a gesture of bad faith and entitlement. This will make future efforts to build relationships more difficult, and things are already difficult as they are.
105
ProbablySatan420 Apr 21, 2026 +20
Eh it can't worse with the Seychelles anyways if they are already doing tbis
20
phil_the_builder Apr 21, 2026 +10
Yes, you are right, sorry, I should have read the full article. Still the situation is somewhat complex. The three countries would face Chinas wrath if they let him through and the Taiwanese president would still be in violation of their respective airspaces if you just went. Maybe the could just redirect around Seychelles, Madagascar and Mauritius.
10
VidE27 Apr 21, 2026 +11
What diplomatic fallout? Pretty sure these countries don’t have diplomatic relationships with Taiwan
11
necropuddi Apr 21, 2026 +1234
Imagine needing to act like this against a country with 2% of your population. That's some small pp energy from China.
1234
imacyco Apr 21, 2026 +697
The US had a similar obsession with Haiti and Cuba. The West really messed up Haiti.
697
DudeFreek Apr 21, 2026 +266
I heard this was because France's idea of reparations is "you owe us for all those slaves we lost money on"
266
Areat Apr 21, 2026 +212
For context this happened after Haiti genocided the white remaining men, womens and childrens on the island, after Haitian leaders promised they wouldn't. And THEN they asked France for independence recognition. France thus demanded a high price. The debt was bought by american banks decades later. It was finally reimbursed shortly after WWII. Back then Haiti still had a higher GDP than the Dominican Republic it share the island with. The same Dominican Republic which Haiti conquered for a while in the 19th century and submitted to racist policies, because Haitians are blacks while Dominicans are hispanic metiszo. Now the Dominican republic is the stable and richer one even thought the divergence happened after the haitian reimbursed their debt. So the picture isn't as black and white as it seem when you listen to a certain portayal of historical events from people who tend to systematically search "how can I depict western white people as the worst". Colonisation and slavery done by France was disgusting. And Haiti isn't a completely innocent country either.
212
NeverSober1900 Apr 21, 2026 +91
Just for clarification Louverture was captured and dead by the time that massacre/genocide occurred. It was carried out by the psycho Dessalines. Don't think Louverture deserves to be blasphemed for it.
91
Areat Apr 21, 2026 +48
Damn, you're right, my bad for the ambivalent sentence. He was the one who promised as Haiti's leader not to slaughter the whites, but not the one who eventually did it.
48
dr_croctapus Apr 21, 2026 +29
And he died in a French prison, the killing of the whites wasn’t justified, but when you add the context that the French killed the more moderate leader, the fact that it happened makes a lot more sense.
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Areat Apr 21, 2026 +21
It happened years later. And killing your leader doesn't justify undergoing a genocide.
21
Jeptic Apr 21, 2026 +3
>Haiti genocided the white remaining men, womens and childrens on the island, after Haitian leaders promised they wouldn't. That is a rough sentence to read. Children being slaughtered. Awful Contextually, this is what happens when a people are enslaved for centuries, undergo some of the most brutal punishments known to man (under the Code Noir) for the sake of one race's pockets and treated like property. When that people get freedom, they exact revenge. Not saying its right, but this is the rage of the once oppressed against their slaveholders. Its brutal.
3
tackle_bones Apr 21, 2026 +17
I just researched this. It wasn’t some rage boiling over reaction. It was debated on the level of the military leader, was argued back and forth in their headquarters, and what’s his name made a political and ideological decision. There was a stipulation to spare the German-descended people and any white women who pledged to marry a black Haitian. Everyone else was toast. And again, accounts are that it wasn’t boiling over rage. From what I remember reading, most of the black population were absolutely “wtf?!?” about it. The killing only began once the revolutionary leaders arrived in town, and it stopped once they left. In other words, it was a military decision done with organized precision. That’s what I remember about it at least, and I don’t really remembering anything really fitting your somewhat romantic description, mostly the opposite.
17
Areat Apr 21, 2026 +24
Sure, the genocide was justified, but the request of money against recognition? A tragedy!
24
mits_the_second Apr 21, 2026 +20
Well remember you ARE on listnook, "white people bad" has been part of a lot of users core ideology since forever
20
internet-arbiter Apr 21, 2026 +1
For context this is also after assimilating the remaining Polish who fought on the sides of the Haitian's against the French and were integrated into the Haitian population. It wasn't just hating white people. It was hating *french* people.
1
Areat Apr 21, 2026 +18
Yeah, it was fine genociding white people because they let 400 poles live. And Hitler let his jewish physician live, so it wasn't against jews, just bad jews!
18
Flour_or_Flower Apr 21, 2026 +4
The Frenchman wants to decry Haitians for their uprising against their French enslavers. Biased much?
4
Areat Apr 21, 2026 +21
The genocide happened years after the uprising. The latter was justified, the former, like all genocide, wasn't. Doesn't seem so hard to understand the difference, but I imagine being a dipshit to me was easier.
21
imacyco Apr 21, 2026 +71
The US helped because the US still had slavery when Haiti got independence.
71
NeverSober1900 Apr 21, 2026 +39
The US was a solid reason Haiti got independence in the first place. Washington and Adams were very sympathetic to Toussaint Louverture and were skirting the French blockades arming them and giving money. Hamilton helped write their original constitution. This might have technically been "pre-independence" but this certainly laid the groundwork for the later revolution from autonomous zone to full independence. US policy didn't switch policy until the Francophile, slave-holding, Jefferson took office who wanted to curry favor with Napoleon. This does coincide with Toussaint being backstabbed and captured but the US wasn't involved in that. Either way the successor Dessalines was a psycho. The real pity of the Haitian Revolution was he was the one who saw it through and not someone more like Louverture. Dessaline's ruthlessness ensured the instability in Haiti that followed as tit-for-tat retaliations became political norms.
39
DudeFreek Apr 21, 2026 +78
We should have been harsher on the confederate traitors they deserved 1000x worse
78
el_sandino Apr 21, 2026 +23
Yes we let them off way too easy and look what we get today as a result
23
O_PLUTO_O Apr 21, 2026 +8
Ah yes, France. The absolute champions of independence from unjust rule and democracy, if you’re a white country.
8
Remote-Cause755 Apr 21, 2026 +13
Ironically most of our pressure on Cuba is because of Cuban immigrants in a major swing state. Who knew emptying your prisons and all dissenters would have consquences
13
synapticrelease Apr 21, 2026 +26
Florida was a swing state 25 years ago. It's no longer a swing state.
26
saljskanetilldanmark Apr 21, 2026 +8
Had? They are still as obsessed as ever.
8
Eclipsed830 Apr 21, 2026 +10
What about blah blah blah. 
10
TheHeretic Apr 21, 2026 +4
US is like 2% to blame for the situation in Haiti
4
UnholyAuraOP Apr 21, 2026 +6
Cuba tried to received Russian Nukes and point them 90 miles off the Florida coast.
6
Legitimate_First Apr 21, 2026 +60
*After* the US placed nukes pointed at Moscow in Turkey and *after* the US tried to invade Cuba.
60
Silent-Act191 Apr 21, 2026 +27
Shhh can't talk about the consequences of the US's own policies. That will make them the aggressor everytime they paint themselves as victims.
27
Uiluj Apr 21, 2026 +23
Usa has 800 military bases around the world. The next country with the most foreign military bases is Russia with 14. The United States have participated in or started most of the wars in the world in the last 80 years.  Only Americans think that the USA is not a global threat to peace and stability. 
23
Remarkable_Aside1381 Apr 21, 2026 +6
> The United States have participated in or started most of the wars in the world in the last 80 years. We started 4, and 2 of them *really* stretches the definition of “starting”. But post-WWII is called Pax Americana for a reason
6
thefloatingpoint Apr 21, 2026 +4
Using the shit the US did as a justification to do these things yourself is peak china. Perfect reason not to listen to you if you ask me.
4
DGlen Apr 21, 2026 +2
How is this justification? Pointing out that two assholes do a****** things doesn't make either one not an a******.
2
ScaryLettuce5048 Apr 21, 2026 +60
Bruh. It's pure geopolitics, it's about leverage and benefits for your own country. It has nothing to do with this incel speak. Because by your logic, many other nations also have the same energy since bigger, stronger nations, often bully weaker ones to fufill their own agenda. The US is probably the most guilty of this. It's cliche to dunk on the US nowadays, but it's the truth.
60
MundaneSchool1823 Apr 21, 2026 +13
Obama did worst. He grounded the Bolivian presidents plane to look for a leaker that exposed USA war crimes, election rigging, spying on USA citizens program and putting back doors in all technologies like microchips. One of his worst crimes alongside all the mass murder, genocide of Yemen and turning Honduras into a Banana Republic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evo_Morales_grounding_incident
13
pandaisunbreakable Apr 21, 2026 +8
whats big pp energy like in this scene, bombing other countries?
8
ExploerTM Apr 21, 2026 +5
Taiwan have all the cards due to chip manufacturing, their geopolitical power is rather significant. You dont have to be the biggest country ever to be a threat, history has plenty examples of that.
5
East-Ice-3199 Apr 21, 2026 +4
Body shaming men in 2026 🤦‍♂️ I bet you get pissed when someone body shames a woman
4
Pitiful-MobileGamer Apr 21, 2026
But I guess it's okay when the US does it to Venezuela
0
Buntschatten Apr 21, 2026 +290
But I was told Chinese investments in Africa didn't come with strings attached, unlike the West's.
290
CryptoThroway8205 Apr 21, 2026 +74
There's like 2 countries that officially recognize Taiwan as a country. One of those is Eswatini. Guess which country in Africa gets no investment from China and therefore has no strings attached? The others are just going along with what they've been doing.
74
Necessary-Visit-2011 Apr 21, 2026 +84
No such thing as a free lunch when it comes to geopolitics.
84
BlueCheese973 Apr 21, 2026 +16
No one recognizes Taiwan as a country and starving African people prefer infrastructure over political bs
16
interestingpanzer Apr 21, 2026 +40
I mean there are still no strings attached. For most of these nations, there is no harm in insulting Taiwan. It is a c**** way to gain larger benefits. Usually to have a good deal you need leverage. Imagine all you had to do is say a few words "we support the one china policy" and once in a while do things like this. No cost but decent returns.
40
buy_nano_coin_xno Apr 21, 2026 +2
Just being shitty to someone innocent, no cost.
2
Goblin_Crotalus Apr 21, 2026 +21
That's geopolitics. Countries don't have friends, they have interests.
21
Nerevarine91 Apr 21, 2026 +5
The people who like to paraphrase this quote forget that the country from which it originates abandoned that policy and realized that having stable allies *is* in a country’s best interests
5
Sesiebtesw Apr 21, 2026 +4
Lol Taiwan isn't innocent. That's why they support an authoritarian monarchy.
4
CuriousAttorney2518 Apr 21, 2026 +12
Soft power. No attachments if you are allies.
12
Dark1000 Apr 21, 2026 +2
China doesn't really have allies. They have partners, suppliers, buyers. It's not an ally relationship.
2
Wischiwaschbaer Apr 21, 2026 +5
Whoever said that? Of course it does. And it works, as you can see. Which is why it's so stupid that the US just threw all of that away.
5
Fickle-Maintenance-1 Apr 21, 2026 +2
But I was told it’s debt trap diplomacy! Debt trap debt trap debt trap when were you ever told it’s “no strings attached”. Nice straw man
2
Mac62961 Apr 22, 2026 +5
China is so damn petty
5
Epyr Apr 21, 2026 +181
Yep, it's well established that China is run by assholes
181
pikachu191 Apr 21, 2026 +21
If only Christopher Robin was around to straighten it out.
21
SandwichPunk Apr 21, 2026 +17
The sad thing is all the people I know when I lived in China wholeheartedly support Xi. Their propoganda is very strong.
17
Nerezza_Floof_Seeker Apr 21, 2026 +37
Tbf to alot of chinese people, the CCP has *massively* improved living standards in China over the years (hell, even just looking at the past 3 decades its amazing what theyve accomplished), so even if they recognize that the governemnt is authoritarian, they often are quite supportive of it overall.
37
Necessary-Visit-2011 Apr 21, 2026 +31
Yeah and a lot of people don't even realize it especially on social media. For all the criticism the US gets I will never complain about the ability to criticize regardless of party alignment.
31
Sawmain Apr 21, 2026 +26
Western countries in general. You can criticize your government all you want generally.
26
Necessary-Visit-2011 Apr 21, 2026 +17
Pretty much a foundational block of a functioning Republic or Democracy.
17
tweakwerker Apr 21, 2026 +6
And yet those veterans yesterday protesting got arrested
6
SnooPuppers8698 Apr 21, 2026 +7
you should start complaining now that trump is suppressing free speech
7
Hogesyx Apr 21, 2026 +36
You know how strong a propaganda is when you hate a foreign leader that has nothing to do with you at all more than your own government.
36
Heavy_Influence4666 Apr 21, 2026 +12
well, my propaganda is better than your propaganda so suk it /s
12
ccs77 Apr 21, 2026 +35
Because objectively he brought more good than bad to their people. The funny thing is the Chinese young population is highly educated and easily travel out of the country to see what's it like. Many go abroad to study or just travel around Asia. The Americans are the opposite, hardly travelling out and many are known to be obnoxious or ignorant. Yet here we are judging the Chinese for supporting their government as if they don't know better
35
Legitimate_First Apr 21, 2026 +12
> The funny thing is the Chinese young population is highly educated and easily travel out of the country to see what's it like. Many go abroad to study or just travel around Asia. Small correction, in absolute amounts this is true. But relative to their massive population? If you grow up in rural China you're not even free to move everywhere within the country.
12
DeAndre_ROY_Ayton Apr 21, 2026 +9
Not sure what’s stopping people from rural China from moving anywhere other than money, please enlighten me as I have lived there for almost a decade with lots of family from rural tiny villages
9
tweakwerker Apr 21, 2026 +13
The sad thing is all the people I know when I lived in Japan wholeheartedly denied Japan did anything wrong in WW2.
13
BlueCheese973 Apr 21, 2026 +4
Propaganda? Lmao China's claims on Taiwan are before even Xi was born.  Of course Chinese people support it, their QoL has improved tenfold
4
MaksimilenRobespiere Apr 21, 2026 +94
Xi Jinping is a whiny little b****.
94
Forsaken-Debate6161 Apr 21, 2026 +62
Pitiful behavior from China I’d say
62
[deleted] Apr 21, 2026 -1
[removed]
-1
woodpaulusgnome Apr 21, 2026 +18
I hate bullying.
18
PuzzleheadedPainOuch Apr 21, 2026 +16
This is what happens when the United States guts enterprises like USAID. We lose all soft power in developing nations, so obviously they'll heed the call of the country that has invested over a trillion dollars over the past decade+ in their region with the Belt and Road initiative
16
sparkax Apr 21, 2026 +3
I get a feeling that we are going to start seeing more and more articles just like this as America collapses in on itself and China steps up to finally exert its global dominance.
3
Admirable-Drama-432 Apr 21, 2026 +17
Geopolitics in 2026: even the airspace has opinions. When a presidential flight plan needs diplomatic approval from half the map, you realize power isn’t just about borders it’s about who can quietly redraw the lines in the sky.
17
SnooPuppers8698 Apr 21, 2026 +8
weird AI post
8
Hanc3y Apr 21, 2026 +11
Eswatini is the opposite of democracy. Taiwan president should not have attempted in the first place
11
CityRulesFootball Apr 21, 2026 +8
Why shouldn’t he? If someone supports a country largely unrecognized obviously he’s gonna take it.
8
Sesiebtesw Apr 21, 2026 +18
He claims he supports democracy and human rights so it's hypocritical that he supporting and funding an authoritarian monarchy committing human rights atrocities. Taiwan loves to use the "We are democracy so we are the good guy" card
18
HalcyoNighT Apr 21, 2026 +8
what? man cant even take plane now?
8
IwishIhadntKilledHim Apr 21, 2026 +5
Ah. Ok I was beginning to wonder when they were ready to start making moves now that the US gives no fucks.
5
zealoSC Apr 21, 2026 +2
Listnook was/is generally supportive of when the US pulled the exact same stunt on the Bolivian President in 2013.
2
CuddieRyan707 Apr 21, 2026 +2
What would they have done, shot him down?
2
Epsilon_Meletis Apr 21, 2026 +2
They seriously should stop asking and just have him fly in a plane without anyone the wiser. They can't block all planes, can they?
2
jaykayenn Apr 22, 2026 +2
But let's keep giving them our tourist dollars yeah? "Hey, I'm just there for martinis and bikinis! I'm not into politics bro."
2
immersive-matthew Apr 22, 2026 +2
I wish all countries would stop with the aggression and manipulation.
2
TheRealTinfoil666 Apr 21, 2026 +6
And this is what happens when a superpower voluntarily withdraws from being a superpower
6
CraftyPerformance272 Apr 21, 2026 +14
And people online will still praise china. China really has won the propaganda war. People now say that Tiananmen Square didn't happen. People forgot about Hong kong. People now say that the million Muslims and concentration/ re-education camps in China never happened. If you point out China killing or re-educating random citizens, politicians, journalists and such it just gets denied.
14
Sesiebtesw Apr 21, 2026 +3
The US already admitted China is not mass killing citizens. The US clearly won the propaganda war seeing as how the US hates Chinese and hates Muslims but feed enough propaganda to the public that they care about Chinese Muslims. Chinese Muslims who the US was calling a terrorists and bombing just a few years earlier.
3
CraftyPerformance272 Apr 21, 2026 +2
Can you say Chinese dictator Xi Jinping looks like Winnie the Pooh so we know you're not about or not being forced to push Chinese propaganda.
2
seanseansean92 Apr 21, 2026 +6
china can easily send a warning message they did not send any represents from "china" and if they accept them as taiwan would directly offend china by indirectly denying taiwan is part of china (serious issue) most country just want to stay out of trouble - not like they dont like taiwan or anything
6
BubbhaJebus Apr 22, 2026 +4
Stop bootlicking China, countries. It only gives them power.
4
Rogue_CobaltZone570 Apr 21, 2026 +3
Taiwan are you good these days? Imagine that you can't go places because China basically says "we own you be quiet." That's what they basically are telling countries that if they allow Taiwan government there will be trouble.
3
Jon_Dunn58 Apr 21, 2026 +2
countries have to stop bending a knee to their economical overlords! i hope other leaders see this and decide not to tie themselves economically to china, they will use leverage over them, its plain to see already
2
pixeltackle Apr 21, 2026 +2
so you're saying I can get roads and bridges for my country OR let some dude fly over from a country that can't offer roads and bridges? if you're aware of the dire needs for one vs. the other in these countries it becomes a very obvious choice
2
Hot_Cheese650 Apr 21, 2026 +5
Communist China can’t have one of the most successful democratic country (with 24 million Taiwanese who use traditional Chinese and speak a better version of mandarin right next to them). Small pp energy from China as always.
5
pikachu191 Apr 21, 2026 +17
Agree with the traditional Chinese, but considering Mandarin is based off what's spoken around Beijing, not sure about that. I had a friend who was from the mainland when I was listening to Jay Chou in the mid-2000s. She told me she found his Mandarin a bit off compared to what she was used to. Technically correct, but off. It's more interesting when you have a movie like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and you have the main characters speak Mandarin with different accents: Chow Yun Fat (Li Mu Bai), from Hong Kong, originally speaks Cantonese; Michelle Yeoh (Yu Shu Lien), from Malaysia, grew up speaking English and Malay and never formally learned Chinese despite being ethnically Chinese; Zhang Ziyi (Jen) speaks mainland Mandarin, while Chang Chen (plays Jen's lover, "Dark Cloud" Lo) speaks Taiwanese Mandarin.
17
Altking123 Apr 21, 2026 +10
A westerner yet again showing ignorance about China. Did you know that the creation of simplified Chinese was originally started by the KMT to increase literacy in China? Taiwan currently uses traditional Chinese because KMT lost the civil war and wanted to differentiate themselves from the mainland. BTW, Taiwanese people speaks Taiwanese Hokkien, which descended from Hokkien spoken in Fujian, China. Hokkien and Taiwanese Hokkien are generally similar.
10
Ultra_Metal Apr 21, 2026
China is acting just like Russia. China should be sanctioned and boycotted.
0
Klat93 Apr 21, 2026 +34
China doesn't get sanctioned the same way the US doesn't. It would cause a severe global economic disruption. The US is the largest consumer market in the world and China is the largest exporter of goods. No one wants to lose businesses from these two countries.
34
Fotiomousy Apr 21, 2026 +6
If anyone is acting like Russia, it's Israel. Israel needs to be sanctioned and boycotted.
6
[deleted] Apr 21, 2026
[removed]
0
Outrageous-Split-646 Apr 21, 2026 +1
Man, people need to actually learn about naming conventions around the world.
1
jert3 Apr 21, 2026 +1
Nothing prevents the meeting from being a VC
1
DatGuy_Shawnaay Apr 21, 2026 +1
Lol not so often I see my country in the news 😭😂
1
OnTheFenceGuy Apr 22, 2026 +1
I’ll be honest. There are like four words in that heakdline I'm not aware of.
1
Fluffbrained-cat Apr 22, 2026 +1
[ Removed by Listnook ]
1
IAMSNORTFACED Apr 22, 2026 +1
Eswatini in shambles
1
hackenclaw Apr 22, 2026 +1
May be time to go online instead of physically flying there?
1
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