China commends South Africa for moving the Taiwan representative office out of its capital Pretoria, said Mao Ning, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, at a regular press briefing in Beijing on Friday.
Mao made the statement when asked whether China asked South Africa to close the Taiwan office.
"The one-China principle is the political foundation for China to establish and grow diplomatic relations with other countries in the world. It is also a universally recognized norm in international relations and where global opinion trends and the arc of history bends. We commend South Africa’s right decision to move the Taipei Liaison Office in South Africa outside the capital Pretoria. 'Taiwan independence' finds no support from the people and will only fail," she said.
China commends South Africa for relocating Taiwan office from its capital
A small volcano in a scenic lake south of Manila erupted on Thursday evening, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said.
According to the institute, a "minor phreatomagmatic eruption" occurred at Taal Volcano in Batangas province, over 60 km south of Manila, at 6:06 p.m. local time Thursday. The eruption lasted for five minutes.
The institute said the event generated a dark gray plume that rose 4,000 meters above the crater. The ashfall is expected to affect nearby southwestern regions.
Alert Level 1 is maintained over Taal Volcano, with Level 5 the highest in scale.
Taal Volcano is one of the most active volcanoes in the Philippines. An eruption in January 2020 displaced nearly 380,000 villagers and destroyed many farms, houses, and roads in the province.
The Philippine archipelago straddles the Pacific "Ring of Fire" and is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
Small volcano near Philippine capital erupts
