Chinese President Xi Jinping lauded Kiribati on Monday for “standing on the right side of history” during his first meeting with the Pacific island nation’s leader since it severed ties with Taiwan. Kiribati switched allegiances to Communist Party-ruled China in September, leaving Taiwan with just 15 allies as Beijing has steadily siphoned them off through billions of dollars in aid since Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen took office in 2016. Tsai is favored to win a second term in this Saturday’s election, an outcome that would likely intensify China’s economic, diplomatic and military pressure over her refusal to accept its insistence that Taiwan is a part of China.