Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele has announced that 21 donor nations, including the United States and China, will be excluded from September’s Pacific Islands Forum leaders’ meeting. (Image Source: Stocks)
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele stood before parliament on Wednesday and made a statement that sent ripples across the Pacific: 21 donor countries, from the United States to China, would not be invited to this year’s Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) leaders’ meeting.
His reasoning? A cabinet decision to halt invitations until a review of each partner’s relationship with the Pacific is complete. The annual meeting, set for September, is the region’s top political gathering, uniting the leaders of its 18 member states.
The exclusion comes after months of speculation and political maneuvering. Beijing had pressed Honiara to block Taiwan from participating. The Solomon Islands cut ties with Taipei in 2019, aligning itself with China, and earlier this year removed Taiwan from its list of countries eligible for concessional entry.
Three PIF members—Marshall Islands, Palau, and Nauru—still recognize Taiwan, and they had feared a deliberate attempt to keep Taiwanese officials out.
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Washington wasted no time expressing frustration. A U.S. State Department spokesperson called the decision “disappointing” and reaffirmed American support for the attendance of all PIF partners, including Taiwan, citing a 1992 agreement among forum leaders.
Opposition politician Peter Kenilorea Jr., chairman of the Solomon Islands foreign relations committee, labeled the move a “massive missed opportunity” for Pacific Island nations to engage directly with donors who help sustain the region’s economies.
Marshall Islands President Hilda Heine went further, accusing China of direct interference. She recalled how Beijing altered last year’s forum communique in Tonga, removing references to Taiwan after Chinese diplomats complained.
The Pacific Islands remain one of the most aid-reliant areas in the world and a frontline for climate change’s rising seas. They have also become a geopolitical chessboard for the United States and China, with security and development deals shaping allegiances.
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Kenilorea Jr. warned that China could still meet with Pacific leaders privately during the summit, bypassing the official agenda. Such actions, he said, might deepen mistrust among PIF members and risk a larger fracture in the bloc’s unity.
For now, the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and select civil society groups will attend, but the absence of the world’s biggest donors will cast a long shadow over this year’s meeting in Honiara.
