US Officials Speak Out Against Beijing, Voice Support for Taiwan After It Loses Two Allies Within a Week

Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen at a press conference at the Presidential Palace in Taipei on Jan. 5, 2019. Sam Yeh/AFP/Getty Images

U.S. officials are calling out Beijing for its coercive moves against its democratic neighbor Taiwan, after the Solomon Islands and Kiribati both ended their diplomatic relationships with the island in favor of the Chinese Communist regime within the same week.

A White House senior official, in a statement to Taiwan’s government-run Central News Agency (CNA), said that Kiribati’s decision is unlikely to contribute to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, nor help the island nation itself as “they work to build a sustainable and sovereign future for their country.”