Feleti Teo is named Tuvalu’s new prime minister after elections that ousted Taiwan supporter

By ROD McGUIRK and TRISTAN LAVALETTE
Associated Press

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Tuvalu’s former Attorney General Feleti Teo has been named prime minister of the tiny South Pacific nation after elections a month ago ousted the last government leader. A government official said Teo was the only candidate nominated by his colleagues in the Parliament and was declared elected Monday without a vote. He and his Cabinet will be sworn into office later this week. It was not immediately clear how the new government will affect China’s influence in the country of around 11,500 people halfway between Australia and Hawaii. Tuvalu is one of only 12 countries that have official diplomatic ties with Taiwan, the self-governed democracy that China claims as its own territory.