Taipei, Taiwan \u2014\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nChina\u2019s growing security presence in the Pacific will be scrutinized this week as the Solomon Islands holds its national election on Wednesday. While the Pacific island nation has been plagued by a slew of domestic issues such as youth unemployment and weakening health and education systems, some analysts say the election is a \u201cde-facto referendum\u201d on its relationship with China.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe results will determine whether the Solomon Islands continues growing its relationship with China or changes course in favor of a different approach,\u201d Parker Novak, a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub, told VOA in a written response.<\/p>\n
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, who seeks an unprecedented second consecutive term, has focused on deepening the country\u2019s ties with China since he returned to power in 2019.<\/p>\n
After switching Solomon Islands\u2019 diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 2019, Sogavare signed a series of security-related agreements with China, including a security pact in 2022 and a police cooperation agreement in 2023.<\/p>\n
The developments prompted the U.S., Australia and other Pacific island nations to express concerns about the security implications of these deals. So far, the Solomon Islands hasn\u2019t revealed details of the controversial security pact with China.<\/p>\n
However, a leaked draft agreement shows that China could potentially deploy security and naval assets to the country.<\/p>\n
The lack of transparency around the security deal with China has prompted several opposition candidates in the Solomon Islands to vow to abolish or review the security pact.<\/p>\n
While opposition leaders have sounded the alarm about China\u2019s growing security presence in the Solomon Islands, Sogavare has strongly defended his administration\u2019s efforts to deepen bilateral ties with China.<\/p>\n
Centering his campaign around his signature \u201cLook North strategy,\u201d which aims to consolidate Solomon Islands\u2019 economic and diplomatic ties with Asian countries, Sogavare has repeatedly emphasized how Chinese support with infrastructure developments and the Pacific Games has helped place the Pacific island nation \u201cin a more favorable footing domestically and internationally.\u201d<\/p>\n
In response to opposition politicians\u2019 concerns about China\u2019s growing influence over the Solomon Islands, China\u2019s Foreign Ministry said Monday that Beijing supports the people of Solomon Islands \u201cin choosing a development path that suits their national conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Some experts say China\u2019s entry into the Solomon Islands\u2019 security sector in recent years has created friction with traditional security partners like Australia. \u201cThere has been an increase in friction as a result of China\u2019s entry into the security space in the Solomon Islands and other parts of the Pacific,\u201d said Mihai Sora, a research fellow in the Pacific Islands program at Lowy Institute in Australia.<\/p>\n
While the Solomon Islands is trying to retain relationships with partners like Australia amid its efforts to deepen ties with China, Sora said the Sogavare administration\u2019s attempt will be difficult to execute because of continuing \u201cstrategic friction\u201d between Beijing and Canberra, especially in the security space. [The Solomon Islands] \u201cwill need to resolve the increasing frictions,\u201d he told VOA by phone.<\/p>\n
Chinese security presence in the Pacific comes into focus<\/strong><\/p>\nIn addition to the Solomon Islands, China\u2019s growing security presence in other parts of the Pacific region is also coming under scrutiny ahead of other major political events. Earlier this month, Tonga\u2019s Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni said he would be open to accepting Chinese security support when the country hosts the Pacific Islands Forum in August.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no reason to be concerned. China is offering to assist with the hosting of the foreign leaders’ meeting,\u201d he told reporters in the Tongan capital Nuku\u02bbalofa.<\/p>\n
The Chinese Embassy in Tonga told AFP in a statement that Beijing \u201chas no interest in geopolitical competition or seeking the so-called ‘sphere of influence.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Some analysts say Tonga\u2019s decision to welcome China as a potential security provider reflects Pacific island nations\u2019 efforts to diversify their security partners since 2021.<\/p>\n
\u201cChina has had success in presenting itself as a security stakeholder in the region and this is certainly of concern to Canberra, Wellington and Washington, who view China\u2019s security interests in the Pacific as disruptive and indicative of China\u2019s broader interests,\u201d Anna Powles, an associate professor in security studies at Massey University in New Zealand, told VOA in a written response.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Fiji\u2019s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka told ABC Australia in March that the country has removed Chinese police embedded in its police force despite the earlier decision to uphold Fiji\u2019s policing cooperation agreement with China.<\/p>\n
Some experts say Fiji is \u201cwalking a fine line\u201d in its relationship with China and Western countries. \u201cBy not throwing away the police deal, Fiji is showing that they are not willing to go all in and align with the West,\u201d Michael Walsh, an affiliated researcher at the Georgetown School of Foreign Service, told VOA by phone.<\/p>\n
In his view, Fiji\u2019s careful calibration of its security relationship with China demonstrates that \u201cthey are going to keep having a relationship with China that extends into the security domain for the foreseeable future.\u201d<\/p>\n
While some experts agree that China has made progress in expanding its security presence in the Pacific, Novak from the Atlantic Council said Beijing\u2019s security influence in the region \u201cshouldn\u2019t be overstated.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMore often than not, Pacific islands countries have elected to maintain or even grow traditional security partnerships with countries like Australia, New Zealand and the United States while carefully maintaining their own sovereignty,\u201d he told VOA.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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