US reveals Pacific strategy to counter China’s influence
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Vice-President Kamala Harris also revealed that the US will open two new embassies - in Tonga and Kiribati.
PHOTO: AFP
SUVA, FIJI (BLOOMBERG, REUTERS) - The United States has revealed a new strategy to prioritise Pacific nations in its foreign policy, seeking to temper concerns over climate change and development in a bid to counter China’s growing influence in the vast oceanic region.
US Vice-President Kamala Harris announced the new commitment, including plans to open more US embassies, in a speech delivered virtually to the Pacific Island Forum leaders meeting in Fiji on Wednesday (July 13). Regional leaders and diplomats have been meeting in Suva since Monday.
“We recognise that in recent years, the Pacific Islands may not have received the diplomatic attention and support that you deserve. So today I am here to tell you directly, we are going to change that,” Ms Harris said in her speech.
Ms Harris announced that the US would appoint a designated Pacific Islands Forum envoy to further increase its diplomatic footprint across the region, as well as new embassies in Kiribati and Tonga. They will be in addition to the US embassy in the Solomon Islands, which is already in the process of reopening.
The US is joining governments including Australia and New Zealand in urgently ramping up relations with Pacific Island nations as China races to woo the strategically important region, amid perceptions that the larger neighbours neglected their partnerships in recent years.
“We recognise that in recent years, the Pacific Islands may not have received the diplomatic attention and support that you deserve. So today I am here to tell you directly, we are going to change that,” Ms Harris said in her speech.
Ms Harris announced that the US would appoint a designated Pacific Islands Forum envoy to further increase its diplomatic footprint across the region, as well as new embassies in Kiribati and Tonga. They will be in addition to the US embassy in the Solomon Islands, which is already in the process of reopening.
The US is joining governments including Australia and New Zealand in urgently ramping up relations with Pacific Island nations as China races to woo the strategically important region, amid perceptions that the larger neighbours neglected their partnerships in recent years.
Officials were shocked by the signing of a security agreement between the Solomon Islands and China in April, a major diplomatic victory for Beijing and its first such deal in the Pacific.
Ms Harris on Wednesday also announced plans to increase funding to US$60 million (S$84 million) annually for projects in the Pacific, including climate resilience infrastructure, combating illegal fishing and investing in marine conservation. The new funding is subject to approval by the US Congress.
The four-day meeting, which has seen Pacific Island countries discuss ways to draw more international support for development and climate change, has been overshadowed by Kiribati earlier withdrawing from the regional group. The Micronesian country left over a leadership dispute within the bloc.
The White House said the new agreement would come under the Indo-Pacific Strategy.
The four-day meeting, which has seen Pacific Island countries discuss ways to draw more international support for development and climate change, has been overshadowed by Kiribati earlier withdrawing from the regional group. The Micronesian country left over a leadership dispute within the bloc.
The White House said the new agreement would come under the Indo-Pacific Strategy.
Fiji in May joined the US in a wide-ranging Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, making it the first Pacific Island nation to do so.
During her speech, Ms Harris unveiled plans to re-establish a US Agency for International Development outpost in Fiji and bring back Peace Corps volunteers to several countries.
The vice-president is the latest senior American official to engage with the region where competition with China has been escalating since the the Solomon Islands pact.
Although the final details of that agreement have not been made public, a leaked draft said it would allow Chinese warships a safe harbor just 2,000km off Australia’s coastline.
During her speech to the Forum, Ms Harris said it was important for international states to be able to conduct themselves “free from aggression or coercion”.
She said: “At a time when we see bad actors seeking to undermine the rules-based order, we must stand united."
Pacific island leaders welcomed the US pledge to increase aid to the region to combat illegal fishing, enhance maritime security and tackle climate change, after decades of stagnant US funding.
“It really shows the US is back and want to play an active role,” said Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr after Ms Harris’ speech. “Sometimes because of our remoteness we get forgotten, so this was important."
Palau has a defence relationship with the US, diplomatic ties with Taiwan and an economic relationship with China.
“The sky is the limit with the opportunity with China. That competition creates, sometimes, concerns about security. We lived through World War II and we don’t want to see that again,” Mr Whipps said.
The US and Australia rely on the Pacific for their economic and national security, while China is keen to gain the support of developing nations for its diplomatic agenda globally, especially in the United Nations.
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi made a rare eight-day visit to the Pacific in May to sign economic agreements with several nations, including a wide-ranging economic and security treaty that turned out to be unsuccessful.
“The sky is the limit with the opportunity with China. That competition creates, sometimes, concerns about security. We lived through World War II and we don’t want to see that again,” Mr Whipps said.
The US and Australia rely on the Pacific for their economic and national security, while China is keen to gain the support of developing nations for its diplomatic agenda globally, especially in the United Nations.
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi made a rare eight-day visit to the Pacific in May to sign economic agreements with several nations, including a wide-ranging economic and security treaty that turned out to be unsuccessful.
China’s foreign ministry said on Monday that Beijing had nothing to do with Kiribati withdrawing from the Pacific Islands.
