US diplomats give warning to Solomon Islands over China bases

Two of Joe Biden’s top diplomats have urged Solomon Islands PM Manasseh Sogavare to resist Chinese pressure to establish a military base in his country.

Two of Joe Biden’s top diplomats have urged Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare to resist Chinese pressure to establish a military base in his country, just hours after the ­Pacific leader provocatively ­declared he was “on the right side of history” in forging closer ties with Beijing.

White House Indo-Pacific co-ordinator Kurt Campbell and ­Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Daniel Kritenbrink, met behind closed doors with Mr Sogavare in Honiara for about 90 minutes on ­Friday, warning that his newly signed security agreement with China risked destabilising the ­region.

The American delegation, which included senior Pentagon and USAID officials, said the Solomon Islands had more to gain from US engagement, which would deliver “prosperity, peace (and) security” benefits.

Honored to speak today with Solomon Islands Prime Minister Sogavare and his Cabinet about plans to open the U.S. Embassy in Honiara and how America is a partner to Solomon Islands on climate resilience, economic prosperity, and security. -DJK pic.twitter.com/aUW7IAKrVQ

— Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs (@USAsiaPacific) April 22, 2022

The meeting came amid ongoing recriminations in Australia over the security pact, with Scott Morrison and Labor defending their records in engaging with ­Pacific leaders.

Mr Sogavare signalled his disregard for the US President’s ­envoys, and Australia’s objections to the deal, by heaping praise on China at a media event earlier in the day with the country’s ­ambassador.

Opening a Chinese-funded sporting centre, Mr Sogavare said the Solomon Islands’ relationship with Beijing was grounded on “trust, respect and a genuine ­desire to achieve long-term sustainable development outcomes for our small nation”.

He said he had forged diplomatic ties with China three years ago “for very, very good reasons”.

“We placed the country on the right side of history, and here we are,” he said.

Mr Sogavare was flanked at the ceremony by Chinese ­ambassador Li Ming, who said the countries’ security agreement would help Solomon Islands achieve economic growth, and urged other nations to accept the agreement.

“I sincerely hope the sovereignty and security interests of Solomon Islands and China will be duly respected,” Mr Li said.

“The Pacific region should ­become a stage for international co-operation, not geopolitical competition.”

Mr Li said development and security were “two sides of the same coin”.

“Without safety and security, countries cannot enjoy sustainable development and economic growth,” he said.

Mr Sogavare has insisted he won’t allow China to establish a military base in Solomon Islands, but Australian and US officials fear he will struggle to push back against Beijing now the security deal is in place.

Tokyo is also concerned about the agreement, with Japanese media reporting the country’s Vice-Foreign Minister, Shingo Miyake, will visit Honiara in early May for talks with Mr Sogavare.

The fallout from the Solomon Islands-China security pact continued to reverberate through the Australian election campaign on Friday, with Labor’s campaign spokesman Jason Clare accusing the government of an “epic fail”.

Mr Clare suggested Mr Morrison could have averted the deal by “picking up the phone, talking to people”.

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare. Picture: AFP

The Prime Minister ridiculed the suggestion as “simplistic”, saying he’d had more than 100 ­engagements with Pacific islands leaders during his time in the job.

“I mean, if it was just as easy as picking up the phone or sending a foreign minister, then these issues wouldn’t occur – it’s not that easy,” Mr Morrison said.

“This is a highly complex situation. Our partners understand that, our partners trust us, and we work closely with them. But we can’t kid ourselves. There is enormous pressure and influence, which is placed on Pacific island leaders across the region, which the Chinese government have been engaged in for some time.”

Mr Morrison also attacked Labor’s deputy leader, Richard Marles, over past comments in which he acknowledged Chinese development support for the ­Pacific had “been a good thing”, and it was “silly” to expect Pacific nations not to engage with China.

Mr Marles wrote last year: “Australia has no right to expect a set of exclusive relationships with the Pacific nations. They are ­perfectly free to engage on ­whatever terms they choose with China or, for that matter, any other country.”

Mr Morrison said: “It doesn’t get more blunt than that. I find it outrageous that Labor would criticise us when their own deputy leader was actually advocating what the Chinese government has been seeking to do in our region.”

Mr Marles told the ABC he didn’t resile from his comments.

“Pacific nations have their own choices that they can make,” he said. “It is precisely because of that that we need to be making sure that we earn the right to be the natural partner of choice for ­countries in the Pacific. Now, when we were in government, that’s what we did. This government has not been present in terms of building its relationships with Pacific countries.”

The opposition has pointed to foreign aid funding statistics showing average annual support for Solomon Islands was, on average, 28 per cent higher each year under Labor than under the ­Coalition. But, at the same time, overall funding to the Pacific has risen under the Coalition to $1.95bn, compared with $1.5bn under Labor in 2013.

US State Department spokesman Ned Price said the US was closely monitoring the fallout from the agreement and remained committed to its partnership with Solomon Islands.

“The signing of the agreement does not change our concerns and that of our regional partners and allies,” Mr Price said.

He said the Campbell-led ­delegation would demonstrate “how a partnership with the United States can deliver prosperity, peace, security, and highlighting the strength and strengthening bonds between America and the Solomon Islands”.

China revealed this week that the security agreement had been signed by Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and his Solomon Islands counterpart, Jeremiah Manele.

The final text remains secret but an earlier leaked version said it would allow China to “make ship visits, carry out logistical replenishment in and have stopover and transition in the Solomon Islands”.