| | | A few items,
(1) It is amusing that huge-Russia's Putin should not be allowed to view militarisation of large-Ukraine by huge-NATO / USA as a threat to Russia that is adjacent, but as am agnostic, can see points on both sides
However the amusing part is that large-Australia is permitted to be understood when when huge-China-China-China signs a paper agreement w/ tiny-Solomon Isles
bloomberg.com
Australia ‘Deeply Disappointed’ After Solomons Signs China Pact
U.S. and Australia had urged Solomon Islands not to sign deal Australia opposition says PM Morrison ‘failed’ to stop treaty
Ben Westcott
20 April 2022, 08:14 GMT+8
Follow us at @BloombergAU on Twitter and BloombergAsia on Facebook for the latest news and analysis.
The U.S. and Australian governments have voiced their concern at the signing of a new security agreement between China and the Solomon Islands, a diplomatic victory for Beijing in a region which has usually turned to Washington and Canberra for support.
Both the U.S. and Australia said they were concerned about the “lack of transparency” in the new treaty, which Canberra added could “undermine stability in our region.”
The Chinese Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday that the deal had officially been signed, saying Foreign Ministers Wang Yi and Jeremiah Manele had agreed to “an intergovernmental framework agreement on security cooperation the other day.”
No final version of the agreement has been made public but an earlier draft, leaked on social media in late March, 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 harbor in the Solomon Islands, just 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) from the Australian coast.
Australia and the U.S. had been attempting to dissuade the Solomon Islands from agreeing to the security pact. The Biden administration’s East Asia czar Kurt Campbell is due to visit the Pacific nation this week as part of a U.S. delegation, while Australia’s Pacific Minister Zed Seselja visited last week.
Read more on Solomon Islands:
In a statement after the signing was announced, Seselja and Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said they were “deeply disappointed” by the Solomon Islands’ decision but added they respected the right to “make sovereign decisions.”
“We are concerned about the lack of transparency with which this agreement has been developed, noting its potential to undermine stability in our region,” the Australian statement said.
A spokesperson for the U.S. National Security Council said the agreement followed a pattern for Beijing of “offering shadowy, vague deals with little regional consultation.”
“The reported signing does not change our concerns, and that of regional allies and partners, and it does not change our commitment to a strong relationship with the region,” the spokesperson said. The U.S. is planning to open an embassy in the Solomon Islands.
‘Worst Failure’
The agreement comes at a bad time for Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, whose party is currently campaigning for a fourth term in government partly off the back of their national security credentials. Australian Shadow Foreign Minister Penny Wong described the signing on Wednesday as the “worst failure of Australian foreign policy in the Pacific since the end of World War II.”
Australia and the U.S. have long been concerned about the Chinese government developing a military foothold in the Pacific, which would complicate the defense of both countries. Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare has insisted the agreement would not allow the Chinese government to build a military base in the Solomon Islands.
Confirming the signing on Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said the agreement would allow both countries to “conduct cooperation including maintenance of social order, protection and safety of people’s lives and property, humanitarian assistance and natural disaster response.” |
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