5.3-magnitude quake hits Solomon Islands's Kirakira

"Nansha Qundao, including Meiji Jiao, Zhubi Jiao and Zhongye Dao, are China’s inherent territory. It is totally legitimate and lawful for China to conduct construction and other activities on its own territory, a matter within China’s sovereignty," Guo said.

An earthquake of magnitude 3.7 on the Richter scale struck the Tibet region early Friday morning, according to the National Centre for Seismology (NCS).

The epicentre was recorded at latitude 29.022° N and longitude 83.978° E in northwestern Nepal. The event registered at a depth of 143 kilometres below the surface. 

Taiwan is a development partner to the forum, and its Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung was present for this annual gathering. Qian Bo, China’s Pacific envoy, spoke to the media at the opening ceremony and threatened “consequences’ because of Taiwan’s presence.

According to The Taipei Times, the remarks followed Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung’s visit to Palau last week, where he led a Taiwanese delegation to events associated with the 55th Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) summit. The participation of only some Pacific leaders at the gathering had prompted speculation about divisions within the regional grouping.