U.S. Vice President Mike Pence has canceled plans to meet with the leader of the Solomon Islands to discuss development partnerships after the Pacific nation cut ties with Taiwan in favor of China on Monday, a senior U.S. official said on Tuesday.
The Solomon Islands was the sixth country to switch allegiance to China since 2016. Self-ruled Taiwan has accused China — which claims Taiwan as its territory — of trying to meddle in its upcoming elections.
Solomons Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare had in July asked Pence for a meeting, the official said. The meeting was to have taken place this month on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York or afterward in Washington.