The Chinese foreign ministry has issued an advisory for its citizens to leave the southern African nation of Eswatini due to perceived security risks. These concerns include rampant cyber fraud and criminal activities associated with gambling, although specific details were not provided. China encourages its citizens to relocate to relatively safer countries such as South Africa at their earliest convenience. Eswatini is one of only 12 nations worldwide, and the sole African country, that maintains diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a territory China claims as its own. This advisory comes after the detention of 40 Chinese nationals in Eswatini since last month for immigration-related offenses, following their arrests during raids on alleged illegal online gambling centers. The group has reportedly pleaded guilty and paid fines, but were re-arrested unlawfully according to their lawyers. The Eswatini government has yet to comment on the situation. China's warning indicates extremely high security risks for its citizens in Eswatini, with potential delays in assistance. It is uncertain how many Chinese nationals reside or work in Eswatini. China has long sought to sever diplomatic relations between other nations and Taiwan, and recently attempted to derail Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's planned visit to Eswatini by pressuring neighboring countries to revoke overflight permits. The trip was eventually cancelled, but Lai later visited Eswatini without disclosing his means of transportation. China recently removed tariffs for all African countries except Eswatini. For more news from the African continent, visit BBCAfrica.com or follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, Facebook at BBC Africa, or Instagram at bbcafrica.