Newspulse

The Pacific Islands Forum has removed references to Taiwan from its official communique following complaints from China. This decision, made after an 18-nation summit, sparked criticism from Taiwan, which condemned China’s intervention as a “rude and unreasonable” act. Despite this, a forum official stated that the removal did not change the leaders’ decisions.

Initially, the communique included a section reaffirming the forum’s 1992 decision on relations with Taiwan. However, after objections from a Chinese envoy, the document was revised, and the references to Taiwan were removed. China maintains that Taiwan is a province with no right to state-to-state relations, a stance that Taiwan disputes.

The revised communique was posted on Saturday, replacing the original version. Taiwan’s foreign ministry criticized China’s actions as undermining regional peace but noted that the change did not affect Taiwan’s status or future participation in the forum.

A spokesperson for the Pacific Islands Forum secretariat emphasized that the communique reflects the consensus of all members and that the final version does not alter the decisions made during the meeting.

Taiwan has been a development partner of the forum since 1993 and continues to maintain diplomatic ties with three forum members: Palau, Tuvalu, and the Marshall Islands. However, Taiwan’s diplomatic presence in the Pacific has declined in recent years as countries like Nauru, Kiribati, and the Solomon Islands have switched allegiance to China, which has increased its influence in the region.