Kiribati caught in tug of war between China and Taiwan as presidential run-off approaches

President Taneti Maamau is pro-Beijing but his challenger, Banuera Berina, broke with the government last year after it abandoned Taiwan as an ally

According to former president Anote Tong, ‘the Taiwan-China issue’ has dominated the campaign, fuelling debate about the benefits of ties with Beijing

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Kiribati President Taneti Maamau and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Photo: Reuters

Published: 4:00pm, 19 Jun 2020Updated: 4:00pm, 19 Jun 2020

The presidential run-off in the Pacific island nation of Kiribati between a pro-Beijing leader and an opposition candidate sympathetic to Taiwan is the most aggressive campaign in the country’s history, according to former president Anote Tong.

The vote, scheduled for June 22, could open the door for Taiwan to reclaim the strategic ally it lost to China last year, with the opposition campaigning on a platform critical of the diplomatic switch.

Kiribati, the site of a mothballed Chinese space tracking station in the central Pacific, has a finely balanced parliament with loyalties evenly split between President Taneti Maamau and ally-turned-rival Banuera Berina, who broke from the government last year citing concerns over the switch.

“Primarily, it has been about the Taiwan-China issue,” said Tong. “In my experience, it’s the most aggressive campaign that I’ve seen,” describing a bidding war of uncosted policies and combative claims over whether Kiribati will benefit from relations with Beijing.

Tong, who said he had been impartial since retiring from politics in 2016, oversaw a shift in Kiribati’s ties from China to Taiwan during his first term in 2003.

“There are some strong feelings against China particularly with the very active participation of the Chinese diplomatic mission during the campaign,” Tong said.

China’s embassy in Kiribati (pronounced Kiribas) said China does not interfere with the internal affairs of other countries.