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US and Taiwan hold forum to shore up support for Taipei in Pacific
- Dialogue held after self-ruled island lost two more diplomatic allies to Beijing last month
- Taiwanese foreign minister says mainland China’s aggression poses threat to region
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Lawrence Chungin Taipei
Representatives of Pacific Island nations, the US and Taiwan met in Taipei on Monday to find ways to shore up support for the self-ruled island in the region as Beijing continues to poach its allies.
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The first Pacific Islands Dialogue, organised by Washington and Taipei, took place after the Solomon Islands and Kiribati switched their diplomatic ties from Taiwan to Beijing last month, sparking concern from the United States.
Taiwan now has just four allies that recognise it as a nation in the Pacific, and 15 diplomatic allies in total. The democratically ruled island is under increasing pressure from Beijing, which sees it as a wayward province to be reunified with the mainland – by force if necessary – and has lured countries in the Pacific to switch recognition with the promise of aid and loans.
The one-day forum aimed to bring together the US, Taiwan and other like-minded partners in the Pacific to explore ways to “increase our cooperation to meet the development needs of Taiwan’s diplomatic partners in the Pacific”, according to the American Institute in Taiwan, Washington’s de facto embassy in Taipei.
Speaking at the opening of the event, Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said the latest diplomatic switches would create a serious threat in the Pacific region because of Beijing’s aggression.
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