(Central News Agency reporter Zeng Yixuan’s special report from Paris on the 5th) The Pacific Islands Forum Summit concluded yesterday. French media are concerned that China is using its influence to exert pressure on Taiwan and other issues, testing the unity of various countries. Other scholars mentioned that when China's influence and its dispute with Taiwan become the focus, important issues such as climate change are easily ignored.
The Pacific Islands Forum summit was held in the friendly state of Palau this year, and Foreign Minister Lin Jialong was invited to attend. China's special envoy for Pacific island countries Qian Bo warned that allowing Taiwan to participate "will always have consequences."
French newspaper Libération reported that Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. said in his opening speech: "Partners are welcome to sail with us, but they do not determine our direction."
In mid-August this year, China advised its citizens not to travel to Palau, saying that there had been robberies targeting tourists and maritime accidents involving Chinese tourists. The measure is clearly targeted at Palau's tourism industry, which accounts for 40% of Palau's gross domestic product and which China has long viewed as a bargaining chip for influence.
Sarah Mohamed-Gaillard, a lecturer at the French National Institute of Oriental Languages and Cultures (INALCO), said that China has portrayed itself as a partner that cares more about Pacific island countries and is not as predatory as Western countries. China provides preferential loans and unconditional aid, while some countries such as Australia regard good governance standards as a condition for aid. Some island countries see this as an opportunity to get rid of their old master countries and decolonize their foreign policies.
Data from Australia's Lowy Institute's "Pacific Aid Map" shows that Australia remains the largest provider of development assistance to Pacific island countries, providing 37% of the funds in 2024, while China only accounts for 6%.
Mohamed Gaya said that Australian funds include education and other purposes, while Chinese investment is visible to the naked eye, such as building the presidential palace in Vanuatu and building a stadium in the Solomon Islands. "These large buildings are usually difficult to maintain and create few job opportunities, but the Chinese know how to show their presence in the eyes of the public."
China has also recently launched some small projects that can be seen in daily life, such as installing solar street lights in Nauro (formerly known as Nauru) and Kiribati, and sending medical teams to remote villages.
The report mentioned that the absence of some figures caused discussion at this Pacific Islands Forum. Among the 18 member countries of the forum, five leaders did not attend. For example, the new prime minister of the Solomon Islands, Matthew Wale, who hopes to break his predecessor's policy and distance himself from China, is facing a vote of no confidence and did not attend the forum; Kiribati President Taneti Maamau sent a former ambassador to Beijing to attend on his behalf instead of appointing a minister.
The report pointed out that these choices are not only signals, but also have diplomatic consequences, because decisions of the Pacific Islands Forum are made by consensus, and sending lower-level envoys may hinder decision-making or weaken its influence.
Mohamed-Gaya also said that while attention has been focused on China's influence and its dispute with Taiwan, other discussions of a non-geostrategic nature in the Pacific Islands Forum have been completely ignored. Pacific island nations had hoped to focus on adapting to climate change, which for them was a matter of life and death.
Le Monde pointed out that in recent years, the pressure exerted by China on the Taiwan issue has tested the unity culture of Pacific island countries.
In 2024, the Taiwan delegation attended the series of activities of the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders' Summit held in Tonga. The final communique of the forum this year clearly mentioned Taiwan and reiterated Taiwan's right to participate in forum activities. However, under China's protest, the communiqué was withdrawn and re-released without mentioning Taiwan; in 2025, in order to avoid a recurrence of the crisis, the Solomon Islands chose not to invite external partners.
The report mentioned that the balance of power within the Pacific Islands Forum has changed dramatically in recent years. Currently, only three countries, Palau, Tuvalu, and the Marshall Islands, recognize Taiwan, while six countries recognized Taiwan before 2019. However, Taiwan maintains the special status of "development partner" in the forum, and China is the "dialogue partner."
However, the Taiwan issue is not the only issue where China's influence tests the unity of Pacific island countries. In July this year, China's nuclear submarine test-fired a ballistic missile over the Pacific Ocean, which also caused differences in opinions among forum members.
The foreign ministers of the 18 member states met in Fiji in early August, but failed to reach a consensus. Some countries wanted to explicitly condemn China, while others advocated a broader statement on all missile tests in the region. Due to a lack of consensus, the issue was left to this week's summit in Palau.
The summit finally issued a communiqué, stating that the leaders "expressed concern about the recent intercontinental ballistic missile test, which flew over multiple member states without adequate notification" and called on "all countries that conduct intercontinental ballistic missile test launches to ensure transparency and eliminate doubts, including providing at least 24 hours of notice before the test launch in accordance with international practice."
