Nauruan President David Adeang is to visit China in the coming days, Beijing’s foreign ministry said yesterday, after the tiny South Pacific nation cut ties with Taiwan in January this year.
“At the invitation of President Xi Jinping (習近平), President of the Republic of Nauru David Adeang will pay a state visit to China from March 24 to 29,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said, without sharing further details about his itinerary.
In a blow to self-ruled Taiwan just days after it held elections, Nauru unexpectedly announced it would no longer recognise the democracy “as a separate country” but “rather as an inalienable part of China’s territory.”
Photo: Reuters
Nauru — population 12,500 — is one of the world’s smallest countries.
It had previously recognized China in July 2002 after more than two decades of diplomatic relations with Taiwan, before switching back to Taiwan in 2005.
Taiwan and China have engaged in a diplomatic tug-of-war to attract allies in the Pacific region, offering generous aid packages and assistance in agricultural and educational development.
The January decision was seen as a major coup for Beijing: Nauru was one of the few countries to officially recognise Taiwan on a diplomatic basis.
Taipei said at the time of the switch that Beijing’s “inducement of... huge financial aid” was behind the decision.
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