Solomon Islands Prime Minister confirmed that the country is negotiating a security agreement with China, but stressed that Solomon Islands “will not take sides”. Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare confirmed on March 29 that Solomon Islands is negotiating a security agreement with China, Chinese media reported, citing British news agency Reuters.
Manasseh Sogavare told parliament on March 29 that the leaked document on the security agreement being negotiated with China was only a draft, and he would not disclose any details of the proposed agreement.
“We are not under any pressure from our new friend and have no intention of asking China to establish a military base in Solomon Islands,” he said.
Manasseh Sogavare said, “Mr. Speaker, we have no intention of getting involved in any geopolitical power struggle.” He added that Solomon Islands will not “take sides”.
Australia and New Zealand have expressed concern about cooperation between China and Solomon Islands in the police and security fields, but Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a regular press conference on March 25 that he hoped the parties concerned would look at it objectively and calmly and not over-interpret it.
Wang Wenbin said that in November 2021, when serious social unrest broke out in Solomon Islands, China firmly supported Solomon Islands government to stop the violence and maintain stability, and provided several batches of police material assistance to Solomon Islands, and sent a temporary police advisory team to Solomon Islands to carry out training and help Solomon Islands police to strengthen their own capacity building, which was widely praised by Solomon Islands government and all sectors of society.
Wang Wenbin stressed, “As two sovereign and independent countries, China and Solomon carry out normal law enforcement and security cooperation on the basis of equal treatment and mutual benefit, which is in line with international law and practice, and is conducive to maintaining social order in Solomon Islands, promoting regional peace and stability, and enhancing the common interests of China and Solomon Islands as well as countries in the region.”
Solomon Islands government officials were quoted by British news agency Reuters on March 24 as saying that Solomon Islands-China had completed the signing of a memorandum of understanding on police cooperation and would submit a draft of a broader security agreement to the cabinet. The official made it clear that “the content of the Sino-Solomon Islands security agreement will be the same as the one signed with Australia.”
It is worth mentioning that according to a document posted to the Internet by a Malaita provincial official of Solomon Islands, Solomon Islands can request China to send law enforcement and armed forces such as police, armed police and military personnel to Solomon Islands according to its needs to help maintain social order and protect people’s lives and property; the Chinese side can, according to its needs and with the consent of the Solomon Islands government, conduct ship visits, logistical supplies, stopovers and transit.
The contents of the above-mentioned documents have sparked heated debate in the Australian media. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported under the headline “Leaked documents reveal China’s plans for military presence in Solomon Islands”, while the Australian edition of The Guardian said “China finalizes security deal with Solomon Islands to deploy warships in Pacific”, and Australia’s Financial Review said “China’s military base in Solomon Islands sounds alarm bells”, according to Chinese media reports.
A Chinese scholar noted on March 24 that China’s police cooperation with some Pacific island countries is longstanding and normal. Australia has been very concerned about China’s police cooperation in Fiji, Solomon Islands, Kiribati and other countries, especially about China’s “potential ability to build military bases” in those countries.
Asked by Australian media about the possibility of Chinese military activity in Solomon Islands, Australian Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews said on March 24 that “the South Pacific is our backyard, our neighbor, and we are very concerned about any activity that takes place in the Pacific islands”.
And Australian Defense Minister Peter Dutton said in an interview that Australia has 50 police officers in Solomon Islands at Honiara’s request and they will stay there until 2023, Chinese media reported March 25, citing British news agency Reuters. He added that Australia is concerned about the establishment of any military bases and will express this view to the Solomon Islands government.
He said Australia wants peace and stability in the region and does not want destabilizing influences and does not want Chinese pressure and coercion to continue to unfold in the region.
Kevin Rudd, a former Australian prime minister and director of the Asia Society’s Institute for Policy Studies, described the security agreement discussions between Solomon Islands and China as “one of the most significant security developments we have seen in decades, and not conducive to the development of Australia’s national security interests”.
He said the draft agreement between the Solomon Islands and China would give Chinese naval and intelligence vessels access to Honiara. It’s a big change to Australia’s immediate strategic environment when there is a country as close to Australia’s territorial waters as Solomon Islands.
He emphasized that for decades, Australia has upheld a principle under the Australia New Zealand United States Security Treaty (ANZUS) with the United States that aligns Pacific Island nations with Australian and U.S. security interests.
Solomon Islands Police, National Security and Corrections Permanent Secretary Karen Galokale disclosed on March 24 that Solomon Islands signed a cooperation agreement with China that covers the scope of policing and confirmed that a broader agreement is under discussion. Any broad security agreement arrangement would put Solomon Islands on par with the previous agreement signed by Australia.
Australia and Solomon signed a bilateral security agreement in 2018 related to the deployment of police and armed forces.
Australia has provided A$2 billion in infrastructure financing to the Pacific islands to counter China’s growing aid influence. Australia also funded an undersea fiber optic cable linking Solomon Islands to Australia, replacing a 2018 bid by Chinese telecommunications company Huawei, over concerns that a cable laid by China would jeopardize regional security.
Australian High Commissioner to Solomon Islands Lachlan Strahan said in a Twitter post on 24 March that he met with Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare on Wednesday to pledge A$21 million in assistance and to build two docks for Solomon Islands patrol boats, a day before the draft China-Solomon Islands security treaty was leaked online.
Tensions between China and Australia have worsened in recent years as Australia has crossed China at every turn politically and militarily, and China has imposed a series of trade sanctions on Australian exports, from wine to coal.