China, Kiribati restore diplomatic ties

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) and Kiribati's President Taneti Mamau sign documents to restore diplomatic relations between the two countries at the Chinese Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York, on Sept. 27, 2019. [Photo: Xinhua/Liu Jie]

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Kiribati's President Taneti Mamau on Friday signed a document to restore diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Wang and Mamau, also Kiribati's foreign minister, signed the joint communique regarding the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Kiribati at the Chinese Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York.

The main content of the communique is as follows:

The People's Republic of China and the Republic of Kiribati, in accordance with the interests and aspirations of their two peoples, have decided to restore diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level.

The two governments have agreed to develop friendly relations between the two countries on the basis of mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence.

The government of the Republic of Kiribati recognizes that there is only one China in the world; the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole lawful government representing China in its entirety; Taiwan is an inalienable part of the Chinese territory; the government of the Republic of Kiribati severs "diplomatic relations" with Taiwan as of this day, and undertakes that it shall no longer develop any official relations or official exchanges with Taiwan; the government of the People's Republic of China appreciates the above-mentioned position of the government of the Republic of Kiribati.