Taiwan's foreign minister Joseph Wu says his country was breaking off diplomatic relations with the Solomon Islands because the Pacific island nation has decided to switch recognition to China.

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare decided at a cabinet meeting on Monday to end 36 years of ties with Taiwan, the state-run Central News Agency in Taiwan reported.

The decision made by the Solomon Islands leaves the politically isolated Taiwan with only 16 formal diplomatic allies, including five Pacific island countries.

Beijing's "One China" principle requires that other nations avoid formal diplomatic recognition of Taiwan if they want full relations with China.

"We strongly condemned the decision. We will immediately end all ongoing bilateral collaboration projects," Taiwan's Wu told a news conference.

Wu said the Solomon Islands government's decision was made in violation of its people's will, as recorded in recent opinion polls conducted there.

Taiwan will begin to recall all diplomatic staff and technical teams, Wu said.

Wu said the Solomon Islands, with a population of just over 600,000, should be very careful about falling into a Chinese trap.

The foreign minister has reported the diplomatic setback to Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.

Since the Beijing-sceptic took office in 2016, China has poached five of Taiwan's allies - Gambia, Sao Tome and Principe, Panama, Burkina Faso and El Salvador.

Taiwan has had a separate government since Chinese nationalists fled to the island in 1949 after losing a civil war to the communists.