A U-S government spokesperson says that China's demand to remove a reference
to Taiwan from the Pacific Islands Forum communique...

...is consistent with its broader efforts to limit Taipei's international
participation.

Taiwan, despite being a non-member, has been an active participant as a
"development partner" at the annual event since 1993, but the reference was
removed after pressure from China.

Before the Taiwan reference was removed, New Zealand media reportedly
witnessed Cook Islands' Prime Minister Mark Brown promising China's
Ambassador to the Pacific, Qian Bo, to remove the Taiwan mention.

Qian Bo labeled the inclusion of Taiwan as a "mistake".

The unnamed U-S government spokesperson praised Taiwan as a "highly capable,
engaged, democratic, and responsible member of the global community, and its
valuable role in addressing global challenges.

Despite the incident, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) assured that the
change won't affect Taiwan's status in the PIF or its right to future
participation.

(CNA_IG)