MOFA CONFIRMS NIGERIA SENDS POLICE TO SEAL OFF TW TRADE OFFICE|外交部:我駐奈國外館 遭警封鎖未撤離

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed during a routine press conference on July 4 that Nigerian authorities had shut down Taiwan's local trade office and expelled the entire staff. The police officers sent to shut down the office have yet to be withdrawn, and the ministry is now negotiating with the Nigeran government to have them withdrawn. Earlier this year, the Nigerian government ordered the Republic of China to move its trade office out of the capital city. On June 30, it sent armed police officers to seal off the trade office and force diplomatic personnel to leave. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed this incident during a routine press conference on July 4. It said the office remains surrounded by the police officers, and the personnel have been unable to return. It added the personnel completed the important task of taking care of classified information before leaving. ==ELEANOR WANG MOFA spokesperson== They took care of things before leaving the office. At present, the trade office remains blockaded by armed Nigerian police officers. There are also staffers from the Chinese embassy and several Chinese media outlets observing the scene outside the office. The ministry said the relocation of the trade office to Lagos, which was to take three months, will be affected. It also said it has lodged protests with the Nigerian government over this incident, and will ask the Nigeria Trade Office in Taiwan to leave Taipei. ==ELEANOR WANG MOFA spokesperson== After handling the relocation of our trade office, we will ask the Nigeria Trade Office in Taiwan to move out of Taipei. Our personnel need the proper space to work, especially under circumstances involving personal safety and other considerations. They continued with their tasks and tried to make progress. Their jobs were hard enough to begin with. The ministry hopes Nigeria can withdraw the police officers as soon as possible to allow the relocation of the trade office to be completed.