U.S. officials warn the Solomon Islands to be wary of Chinese funding promises and not be pressed into cutting ties with Taiwan by barrett_ink
SYDNEY - U.S. officials have warned the Solomon Islands to be wary of Chinese funding promises and not to be pressed into cutting ties with Taiwan, in comments highlighting increasing big-power competition for influence in the South Pacific.
The U.S. officials, in their comments, did not explicitly call for the retention of the Taiwan alliance, according to a recording obtained by Reuters, but they urged caution. China, which claims self-ruled and democratic Taiwan as its own and views it as a wayward province, has offered the Solomons financial assistance if it were to switch.
The number of nations recognizing Taiwan has been dwindling, with El Salvador in Central America, Burkina Faso in West Africa and the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean, all switching to Beijing last year. Graeme Smith, from the department of Pacific affairs at The Australian National University, said the Trump administration was more activist than its predecessors in its overt support for Taiwan, especially as China’s assertiveness grows.
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