A deputy foreign minister is to attend this week’s meeting of Pacific island leaders in Tonga, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, as China and the US jostle for influence in the region.
The Pacific is also an area of competition between Taipei and Beijing, as China whittles away at the number of countries that maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Three countries — Palau, Tuvalu and the Marshall Islands — have stuck with Taipei.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tien Chung-kwang (田中光) would hold a summit with its three Pacific allies to bolster its partnership with them and other “like-minded countries,” a reference to Western democracies such as the US and Australia, the ministry said.
Photo: Reuters
In January, shortly after President William Lai (賴清德) won the presidential election, Nauru switched ties from Taiwan to China, in what Taipei said was part of a sustained Chinese pressure campaign.
In 2018, Nauru, then still an ally of Taiwan, criticized an “insolent” China for speaking out of turn at the Pacific Islands Forum. Nauru had recognized China before, from 2002 to 2005.
Taiwan has participated in the forum since 1993 as a development partner under the name “Taiwan/Republic of China.”
Since they last met, the forum’s 18 scattered members have been buffeted by economic headwinds and escalating competition between the US and China.
Beijing has been painstakingly courting Pacific nations, using its largesse to build government offices, sporting venues, hospitals, highways and more.
Fearful that China could spin this into a permanent military presence, the US and Australia have responded by dishing out aid, inking bilateral agreements and reopening long-dormant embassies.
Climate change and security are expected to dominate discussions at this week’s meeting of the 18 Pacific island leaders. US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell would also be attending.
Taiwan and Tonga had diplomatic ties from 1972 to 1998 when the country switched recognition to Beijing and broke off relations with Taipei.
Only 12 UN member countries maintain official diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
Additional reporting by AFP
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