China said it has signed a security agreement with the Solomon Islands, which had faced pressure from nearby Australia and the US to reject the deal.
Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) and Solomon Islands Minister of Foreign Affairs Jeremiah Manele “officially signed an intergovernmental framework agreement on security cooperation the other day,” Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Wang Wenbin (汪文斌) said yesterday at a regular news briefing in Beijing.
“The two sides will conduct cooperation, including maintenance of social order, protection and safety of people’s lives and property, humanitarian assistance and natural disaster response, to help the Solomon Islands strengthen capacity-building and safeguard its own security,” Wang Wenbin said.
Photo: AP
US National Security Council Indo-Pacific Affairs Coordinator Kurt Campbell plans to lead a delegation of US officials to the South Pacific nation in the coming days, a White House statement said.
The tour is to include Hawaii, Fiji and Papua New Guinea.
“The delegation will meet with senior government officials to ensure our partnerships deliver prosperity, security and peace across the Pacific Islands and the Indo-Pacific [region],” the statement said.
Earlier this month, Australian Minister for International Development and the Pacific Zed Seselja made an unusual mid-election campaign trip to the Solomon Islands, where he publicly asked the Pacific nation’s leadership to “consider” not signing the security pact with Beijing.
The flurry of diplomacy was sparked by the leaking of a draft agreement late last month between the Chinese government and the Solomon Islands that allowed the deployment of China’s security forces in the case of domestic unrest.
The agreement also facilitates a safe harbor for Chinese naval vessels just 2,000km from the Australian coastline.
Speaking to Australian Broadcasting Corp on Sunday, Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne said the government was concerned about a “lack of transparency” in the security agreement.
However, Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare has said that the pact would not allow China to construct a military base and has strongly asserted his country’s right to an independent foreign policy.
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