WELLINGTON – China on Sept 1 objected to Taiwan’s presence at the Pacific Islands Forum, saying the democratically ruled island was not qualified to attend the summit, but Australia and New Zealand said the Pacific bloc would decide the guest list.
China views Taiwan as its own territory, and China-Taiwan tensions have featured prominently at the meeting, which was intended to demonstrate regional unity.
Palau, which is hosting the 2026 meeting, is among just a handful of Pacific nations that have maintained diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
At his speech during the forum’s opening ceremony on Aug 31, Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr said: “Our partners are welcome to sail with us, but they do not choose our destination.”
However, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Taiwan was “not qualified to participate in the activities of the forum at all”.
“The Taiwan authorities sent Lin Chia-lung and other Taiwan independence separatists to make sneaky visits around in a vain attempt to attract eyeballs and attention, and the result can only be inviting disgrace upon themselves,” he said at a regular news briefing in Beijing on Sept 1. Palau invited Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung for meetings and side events held alongside the forum.
Taiwan is not a formal dialogue partner of the forum, but a development partner. China, the US, the European Union, Britain, Canada, India and Japan are among the 21 dialogue partners of the forum.
Lin said on Sept 1 that Taiwan has participated in the summit for several decades, including the opening ceremony. “We should not make compromises just because of China bullying,” he told reporters.
Absent leaders
China’s special envoy for Pacific island affairs Qian Bo said on Aug 31 that Taiwan’s presence would have consequences – without specifying what they would be.
“It’s not a threat,” he added.
“This is objected to by all, so this should not have happened. We think it’s very inappropriate to do so,” he told reporters on Aug 31 after an opening ceremony in Palau, an archipelago of over 500 islands that has maintained diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said “the Pacific Islands Forum determines what happens here, not any other country”, when asked by reporters about the Chinese envoy’s remarks. “This is primarily a gathering of the Pacific family… and I look forward to the engagement,” he said on Sept 1.
New Zealand’s Foreign Minister, Winston Peters, echoed this sentiment, saying the group does not take instructions from countries outside of it.
The prime ministers of Fiji, Vanuatu, Samoa and the Solomon Islands and the president of Kiribati are not attending the forum, and have sent low-ranking ministers instead, raising concerns the absences could impact the outcome of the meeting.
Peters said he was “highly suspicious” about whether foreign interference might be behind some of the leaders’ absences, Australian state media ABC News reported, adding that Peters did not point the finger directly at China but said New Zealand would verify what was happening before laying any blame.
China’s foreign ministry spokesperson said his comments were unfounded.
China has gradually whittled away the number of Pacific island countries with formal ties to Taipei, with only three remaining – Palau, Tuvalu and the Marshall Islands.
Though China is Australia’s largest trading partner, Canberra remains wary of Beijing’s expanding influence in the Pacific and is pursuing security deals with island nations to prevent China from establishing a permanent military presence in the region.
Australia, New Zealand and the US have long considered the South Pacific to fall within their sphere of influence.
In the latest sign of that effort, New Zealand and the US, in a joint statement released on Sept 1 during the summit, said they would jointly fund a major upgrade of a World War II port on a Cook Islands’ atoll. REUTERS
