Solomon Islands inked Chinese security pact 'with our eyes wide open', says PM

SYDNEY • Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare was defiant yesterday about his decision to sign a controversial security pact with China in the face of lobbying from Australia and the United States.

He said it was an "honour and privilege" to tell Parliament the deal had been signed by officials in Honiara and Beijing "a few days ago".

The deal, announced on Tuesday by Beijing, has faced sharp criticism from Australia and the US, which fear that the pact could lead to China gaining a military foothold in the South Pacific.

Mr Sogavare said his government had signed the deal "with our eyes wide open" but declined to tell the opposition leader when the signed version would be made public.

An earlier draft, leaked last month, said the pact would allow the Chinese government to send its military to the Solomon Islands, if requested by the Pacific nation.

It would also give China's naval vessels a safe harbour in the Solomon Islands, less than 2,000km from Australia.

The broad wording of the draft prompted a flurry of diplomatic overtures from Washington and Canberra to prevent it from being signed, but they were ultimately unsuccessful.

The Solomon Islands and China are moving closer in recent years, with Mr Sogavare's government severing ties with Taiwan in 2019.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison faced a barrage of questions yesterday about his handling of the Solomon Islands.

He said he would visit the Pacific nation "at the first opportunity" but rejected criticism that he or Foreign Minister Marise Payne should have travelled there to personally lobby against the deal.

Mr Morrison added that Australia had to respect the decisions made by regional neighbours and he had "spent countless hours in meetings with Pacific Island leaders".

But Australian Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said the deal would enable China to set up a military base in the Solomon Islands. "We don't want a 'little Cuba' off our coast," he said.

Mr Sogavare has previously said there was "no intention whatsoever... to ask China to build a military base in the Solomon Islands".

The deal was signed just days before senior US National Security Council official Kurt Campbell is due to arrive in the Pacific nation for high-level talks.

The US has promised to reopen its embassy in the Solomon Islands, which has been closed since 1993.

Mr Mihai Sora from the Sydney-based Lowy Institute think-tank said it was "almost certain the deal was rushed through" ahead of Mr Campbell's visit.

Mr Sora said there was very little Australia could have done to stop the deal, as it was "personal" for Mr Sogavare.

Last November, protests against his rule sparked riots in the capital Honiara, during which the city's Chinatown was torched.

While the unrest was fuelled by poverty, unemployment and inter-island rivalries, anti-China sentiment also played a role.

A spokesman for the US National Security Council said the agreement followed a pattern for Beijing of "offering shadowy, vague deals with little regional consultation".

At a regular press briefing in Beijing yesterday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said the agreement "does not target any third parties, it does not replace current cooperation mechanisms". He added: "How could this pose severe risks to the US?"

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, BLOOMBERG