A statement reaffirming Taiwan's participation in the Pacific Islands Forum has been deleted from the latest version of the group's concluding communique.
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00:00China has pressured the Pacific Islands Forum to remove a mention of Taiwan from its closing
00:06statement. On Friday, the forum issued its communique, reaffirming the group's decision
00:13to have Taiwan as a development partner. After protests from China's special envoy to the
00:19Pacific, the forum removed that section from the statement. Only three of the
00:24forum's member states still have official diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
00:28International observers say this is part of China's efforts to increase its influence in the region.