Taiwan ’s foreign minister, Lin Chia-lung, arrived in Eswatini days after a planned presidential visit to the African nation was abruptly cancelled, with Taipei accusing China of exerting pressure behind the scenes. In a message shared after landing, Mr Lin said Taipei would not be held back by “authoritarian forces”. Taiwan was forced to cancel president Lai Ching-te’s trip after Seychelles , Mauritius and Madagascar revoked overflight permits for his aircraft on a planned visit to Eswatini . It marked the first time a Taiwanese president had had to cancel an entire foreign trip following airspace denials, in what analysts see as a new strategy to block visits to one of Taiwan’s 12 remaining diplomatic allies. China praised the three countries for their decision but denied allegations that Beijing had applied economic pressure to block Mr Lai’s travel.…