The United States was aware that Nauru was contemplating dropping diplomatic ties with Taiwan before the Pacific nation formalized the decision in January, according to a top State Department official.
The timing of Nauru’s diplomatic switch is significant, as it happened just days after Taiwan held a presidential election in which Taiwanese voters chose to keep the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in power for another four years. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) sees the DPP as “secessionist,” a party whose agendas are roadblocks to its territorial ambition of seizing the self-ruled island.
Mr. Kritenbrink told lawmakers that Nauru’s decision was not a surprise.
“We had known for some time that there were concerns in Nauru, and we were working with partners to meet those,” he said. “But in this instance, they decided to flip.”
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller called Nauru’s diplomatic decision a “disappointing one” in a January statement and urged all countries to “expand engagement with Taiwan.”
“Our message to Nauru and then to the three remaining partners of Taiwan in the region is again: Countries ought to be careful and clear-eyed about entering in these arrangements with China,” Mr. Kritenbrink said. “China often makes many promises that remain unfulfilled, and that can have negative consequences.”
Currently, Taiwan has 12 diplomatic allies, including three Pacific nations: the Marshall Islands, the Republic of Palau, and Tuvalu.
The United States is working “very carefully and closely“ with Taiwan’s three remaining Pacific allies ”to make sure their needs are met,” according to Mr. Kritenbrink.
Pacific Island Nations
The Solomon Islands ended its diplomatic relationship with Taiwan in September 2019. Before then, the two sides had been diplomatic allies for 36 years.Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the Solomon Islands have been facing new problems since its diplomatic switch.
“Since the Solomon Islands changed their recognition from Taiwan to China, PRC nationals have moved to the islands, flooding the market with low-cost goods, extracting timber and fish and other resources, bringing in tourism practices that threaten the natural environment, in some cases, setting up transnational criminal operations that evade the limited capacity of local law enforcement,” Mr. Cardin said.
PRC is the acronym for the People’s Republic of China.
Mr. Kritenbrink called China’s policing agreements “opaque” and “deeply concerning.”
China is aiming to sign more security agreements with Pacific nations, according to Sen. James Risch (R-Idaho), the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
“Papua New Guinea, which just signed a new security pact with us last year, has been approached by China about a new security and policing arrangement. Chinese police are present in Kiribati, and we know China has set its sights on other nations,” Mr. Risch said.
In May 2023, the United States and Papua New Guinea (PNG) signed a defense cooperation agreement.
“We’ve identified four countries in which we want to establish new embassies. We’ve successfully done so in the Solomon Islands and in Tonga. We will be open imminently in Vanuatu,” he said.
“We’re working diligently to follow up on Kiribati, and we'll need parliamentary approval for that.”
“The Pacific Islands face significant challenges to their security and prosperity, including from climate change and economic shocks, making the region more vulnerable to influence from the PRC,” Mr. Kritenbrink said.
“As Secretary [Antony] Blinken has said, the PRC is the only country with both the intent to reshape the international order and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military, and technological power to do it. That certainly holds true in the Pacific.”
