A security agreement signed by China and the Solomon Islands in April has created waves of concern across the region and as far as the United States. Originally leaked as a draftThe deal was formally signed at a meeting in Beijing between PRC and Solomon Islands foreign ministry officials, raising alarm bells over what it means for Australia’s national security.
The agreement would contain a provision allowing the Solomon Islands to ask China to send police and military personnel to help local law enforcement maintain civil order and protect lives and property.
China followed up the Solomon Islands initiative with a tour of the Pacific Islands by PRC Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who recently met with representatives of eight island nations during a visit to Fiji, where diplomats would work towards cooperative measures on issues ranging from health to disaster management. agriculture.
At the end of May, the president of the Federated States of Micronesia urged twenty-one other Pacific island countries not to accept Beijing’s proposal. David Panuelo said the China-Pacific Islands Joint Development Framework aimed to achieve for China “access and control of our region, resulting in the disruption of regional peace, security and stability”.
Meanwhile, the United States has accelerated steps to reopen its embassy in the Solomon Islands, which had been closed since 1993, and Australia agreed to set up a border post to provide a communications network for emergency services.
The encrypted brief turned to several Pacific regional affairs experts to dig deeper into what this means for the region and for national security.
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