Solomon Islands sends police officers to China to undergo month-long training exercise

One of Australia’s closest neighbours has announced a new move, days after assuring it would not allow a Chinese military presence in its territory.

The Solomon Islands will send 32 police officers to China to undergo a month-long training exercise, just days after the nation assured Australia it would not allow a Chinese military presence in its territory.

The group will be led by Deputy Commissioner Ian Vaevaso, who described the exercise as “the biggest delegation to visit a foreign country for professional police training in the history of Royal Solomon Islands Police Force”.

It remains unclear what exactly Chinese training program will consist of.

Mr Vaevaso said the officers will be taught “new tactics and skills set that officers will acquire and applicable to their duties upon their return”.

Officers will also “visit different police stations and departments in China to communicate with the Chinese police colleagues on their expertise in policing”.

The island nation has been at the centre of a diplomatic tussle in the southern Pacific Ocean between the United States, Australia and their allies on one side and an increasingly assertive China on the other.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met Sogavare in Canberra on Thursday to smooth ties that have been frayed since the Solomons signed a security pact with Beijing this year — a move that sparked fears of Chinese military presence in the region.

“About China, this is a sensitive issue we discussed and I assured Australia when I met with Anthony Albanese yesterday that we will not allow such to happen,” Sogavare said in a written reply to questions sent by AFP.

Previously, however, Sogavare has said that China would be permitted to build wharves and airports — which could be useful for both civilian and military purposes.

The Solomon Islands will send 32 police officers to China to undergo a month-long training exercise. Picture: Royal Solomon Islands Police Force)

Solomon Islands switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 2019 and signed its security pact with China earlier this year.

Last year in November, violent demonstrations broke out in the Solomons capital Honiara, sparked in part by China’s growing influence in the country but also fuelled by poverty and inter-island rivalries.

Much of Honiara’s Chinatown was torched.

Further such riots were “highly unlikely”, Sogavare told AFP, saying his government had put in place measures to control any violence.

The Solomons-Australia relationship has been strained in recent months. Canberra in September offered to help Solomon Islands fund its upcoming national elections — an offer Sogavare initially condemned but later accepted.

The Solomon Islands government has been sensitive to criticism of its ties to China.

Earlier this year, Sogavare threatened to ban foreign media after Australia’s national broadcaster aired a report about rising Chinese influence in the Solomons.

Sogavare said he expressed concern to Albanese about the conduct of Australian journalists, accusing them of “failing to abide by the standards when reporting about our affairs”.

Canberra in September offered to help Solomon Islands fund its upcoming national elections — an offer Sogavare initially condemned but later accepted.

This week, Solomons Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele said he was “not comfortable” with indirect references to China in a draft US-Pacific partnership declaration.

And Sogavare told the United Nations in September that his country had been “vilified” for its relationship with Beijing.

The latest move comes as Australian deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles announced he will visit the neighbouring nation of Papua New Guinea this week to discuss the government’s partnership with the nation.

“My visit to Papua New Guinea reflects the importance Australia places on our friendship with our closest neighbour, and reaffirms the Government’s commitment to partnering with Papua New Guinea through the PNG-Australia Comprehensive Strategic and Economic Partnership (CSEP),” he said in a statement on Wednesday,

“I am looking forward to meeting with Prime Minister Marape and some of his Ministers, to discuss our respective priorities and how we can better align our efforts, partnership opportunities, and reaffirm the importance of working with our Pacific family.”

— with AFP