Nov 7th 2019THIS WEEK the president of the Micronesian state of Kiribati, Taneti Maamau, lost his governing majority when 13 of his MPs crossed the floor. The defectors claim they are unhappy that in September the atoll nation of 110,000 souls, spread over 3.5m km² of the south Pacific, severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan and initiated them with China instead. Something similar may be about to happen in the more populous Solomon Islands. Its government has also just switched allegiance to China. The opposition reckons that it will soon be able to peel off eight government MPs to win a vote of no-confidence over the decision. If so, it would be the fourth time Manasseh Sogavare has been unseated as prime minister. His latest stint in the job began only in April.Why such instability? Don’t overplay the China factor. Mr Maamau complains the defectors never even raised their grievances with him. In the Solomon Islands, China hardly featured in the election campaign earlier this year. That, of course, is one of the reasons pro-Taiwan MPs are crying foul. But relations with China have not destabilised two governments in the region because they are a burning issue. It just does not take much to destabilise Pacific governments.Choose us for news analysis that respects your time and intelligenceSubscribe to The EconomistWe filter out the noise of the daily news cycle and analyse the trends that matterWe give you rigorous, deeply researched and fact-checked journalism. That’s why Americans named us their most trusted news source in 2017Available wherever you are—in print, digital and, uniquely, in audio, fully narrated by professional broadcastersThis website adheres to all nine of NewsGuard‘s standards of credibility and transparency.ORContinue reading this articleRegister with an email address