The Solomon Islands foreign minister said on Tuesday that his people opposed the first draft US-Pacific Partnership Declaration because the Pacific territory was “not comfortable” with some indirect references to China.
Jeremiah Manele, the foreign minister of the Solomon Islands bordering French New Caledonia, was questioned by New Zealand journalists about his country’s concerns following a joint statement signed in Washington last week.
– There were a few mentions in the initial draft that we were not comfortable with – said the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
These “put us in a position where we have to choose sides and we don’t want to be put in a position where we have to choose sides,” Manele explained.
When asked if these references were to China, he replied: “Indirectly.”
Manele said the United States and the 14 Pacific Islands that met in Washington found “common ground” in the negotiations, allowing the Solomon Islands to sign a final declaration.
The United States has been a key player in the South Pacific since the end of World War II.
“The Solomon Islands have been unfairly attacked since relations with China were formalized. We have been subjected to an avalanche of criticism, disinformation and intimidation “- Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare condemned American and Western efforts to” force “his country into the new Cold War pic.twitter.com/VHEaGA0r6j
But in recent years, China has strengthened its position through investment, police training and, most controversially, a security pact with the Solomon Islands.
Countering Beijing’s growing power in the region, US President Joe Biden last week announced € 800 million in funding for the Pacific Islands and signed a joint declaration with them declaring a closer US-Pacific partnership.
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare told AFP in Washington at the time that the negotiations had resolved his concerns “in a positive way.”
Manele, speaking in Wellington after meeting his New Zealand counterpart Nanai Mahuta, said both China and the United States were welcome in the Pacific.
The foreign minister reiterated the Solomon’s position that the security pact with Beijing signed in April would not lead China to establish a military presence in the archipelago.
“The Indo-Pacific … should not be seen as a region of confrontation, conflict, war,” said Manele.
“There are no provisions in this agreement regarding the military base. We welcome the re-engagement of the United States in the Pacific and look forward to working with all of our partners. ”
