Kiribati President Taneti Maamau was unable to meet New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters because he had “a pre-planned and significant historical event”, a Cabinet minister in Kiribati says.

Alexander Teabo, Education Minister in Maamau’s government, told RNZ Pacific that “it is important for the truth to be conveyed accurately” after the “diplomatic tiff” between the two nations was confirmed by Peters as reported.

Maamau is currently in Fiji for his first state visit to the country.

• READ MORE: NZ aid for Kiribati under review after meeting cancelled with Peters
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Peters said New Zealand could not commit to ongoing monetary aid in Kiribati after three cancelled or postponed visits in recent months.

A spokesperson from Peters’ office said the Deputy Prime Minister’s visit to Tarawa was set to be the first in over five years and took a “month-long effort”. However, the NZ government was informed a week prior to the meeting that Maamau was no longer available.

His office announced that, as a result of the “lack of political-level contact”, Aotearoa was reviewing its development programme in Kiribati. It is a move that has been described as “not the best approach” by Victoria University’s professor in comparative politics Dr Jon Fraenkel.

Minister Teabo said that Peters’ visit to Kiribati was cancelled by the NZ government.

“It is correct that the President was unavailable in Tarawa due to a pre-planned and significant historical event hosted on his home island,” he said.

Date set ‘several months prior’
“This important event’s date was established by the Head of the Catholic Church several months prior.”

He said Maamau’s presence and support were required on his home island for this event, and it was not possible for him to be elsewhere.

Teabo pointed out that Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister was happy to meet with Kiribati’s Vice-President in a recent visit.

“The visit by NZ Foreign Minister was cancelled by NZ itself but now the blame is on the President of Kiribati as the reason for all the cuts and the impacts to be felt by the people.

“This is unfair to someone who is doing his best for his people who needed him at any particular time.”

‘Tried several times’ – Luxon
The New Zealand aid programme is worth over NZ$100 million, but increasingly, Kiribati has been receiving money from China after ditching its diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 2019.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said the country was keen to meet and work with Kiribati, like other Pacific nations.

Luxon said he did not know whether the lack of communication was due to Kiribati and China getting closer.

“The Foreign Minister has tried several times to make sure that as a new government, we can have a conversation with Kiribati and have a relationship there.

“He’s very keen to meet with them and help them and work with them in a very constructive way but that hasn’t happened.”

New Zealand’s Minister of Defence Judith Collins agrees with Peters’ decision to review aid to Kiribati.

Collins said she would talk to Peters about it today.

“I think we need to be very careful about where our aid goes, how it’s being used and I agree with him. We can’t have a disrespectful relationship.”

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Pacific leaders really need to look seriously at the concerns raised by the President Taneti Maamau of Kiribati, resulting in the country’s withdrawal from the Pacific Islands Forum.

This is the view of Tuvalu’s Foreign Minister Simon Kofe, who said he was saddened by the turn of events.

“It came by surprise to us, but I think in the spirit of solidarity and unity, we really need to look seriously at the concerns raised by the President of Kiribati and I’m sure it’s going to be discussed this week by the leaders,” he said.

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Samoan Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa said the forum meeting was significant considering the leaders had not met for the past two years.

“The issue was, first and foremost, the unity of the region, bringing back the northern members, so I think we’re fairly successful in that,” she said.

“We hope they will come back to the fold and we need to understand what’s happening with Kiribati.”

PIF Secretary-General Henry Puna said that after the forum meeting the forum would approach Kiribati to address its concerns.

‘The forum family has challenges’
“Like in any family, the forum family has its challenges and we might not agree on everything all the time, but what is important is that when disagreements do arise, we have the grace to get together and talk,” he said.

“Make time because you know in the Pacific way, talanoa is absolutely critical, that’s what we are looking forward to, to engage with the President and governing people of Kiribati so that we can find a way forward.

“I believe by talking, you can resolve any problem and so give us time and I’m sure that our leaders are very keen to engage with Kiribati and to find a way to embrace them back into the forum family.”

Wanshika Kumar is a Fiji Times reporter. Republished with permission.

A Pacific journalist believes the Kiribati government has been coerced by Beijing to accommodate China’s foreign minister’s visit.

Kiribati authorities have confirmed that Wang Yi would briefly stopover to meet President Taneti Maamau as part of his Pacific-wide tour.

Journalist Rimon Rimon said the government had been “very secretive” and “people are frustrated and angry” after only learning about the trip via a Facebook post.

• READ MORE: China wants closer security, trade links with the Pacific
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Rimon said Kiribati was grappling with a covid-19 outbreak and with the borders closed it was a change in practice by the government to oblige Beijing’s request.

“I think there has been some kind of pressure from Beijing. Only last night I had confirmation from a source from Beijing that before they travelled Kiribati was finally on the list,” he said.

“So, I finally understood that there had been some pressures and our government has submitted to those pressures.”

Rimon said a deal with Kiribati had more significance for China, as Beijing had already demonstrated its willingness to develop Kiribati’s northernmost island, Kanton Island, which has strategic military potential.

Kiribati government ‘reluctant’
“And I think China is pursuing that. I think our government is quite reluctant on something military-wise, based on the narrative that the government has been saying throughout the years.

“But I have no doubt this is, this is the number one thing on China’s agenda. How our government will respond to that or accommodate that. I have no idea of that,” he said.

The Kiribati government said the high-level state visit was an important milestone for Kiribati-China relations, as it would strengthen and promote partnership and cooperation between the two countries after the resumption of diplomatic ties in 2019.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Wang Yi is due to visit Vanuatu next Wednesday as part of his tour.

The Chinese Embassy in Port Vila has confirmed the arrival date for bilateral talks with the government of Vanuatu.

The embassy said Wang’s visit in Vanuatu had nothing to do with security issues. Instead, it said, he would discuss five memorandums of understanding as well as other business.

The embassy said the discussion points would be on tangible benefits that China could bring to the people of Vanuatu.

As well as Port Vila, Wang is due to visit Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga, and Kiribati. He is currently in Solomon Islands.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.