Lured by China’s Cash, Two Pacific Islands Bail on Taiwan
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For Taiwan, the Pacific Islands have been relatively stable as China siphoned off diplomatic partners elsewhere after independence-leaning President Tsai Ing-wen took power in 2016. That all changed last week. On Monday, the Solomon Islands recognized China, ending formal relations with Taiwan that began in 1983, and on Friday, Kiribati followed suit. Taiwan now has just 15 diplomatic partners worldwide and at least two of those relationships are also looking shaky, as China’s spending spree of $1.6 billion in aid and loans to the region since 2011 has outmatched the democratically-run island.