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Solomon Islands

The Solomon Islands is a nation composed of hundreds of islands in the South Pacific. In 2022, it signed a security pact with China, causing uproar among some of its neighbours, including Australia, and concern for countries such as the US that have strategic interests in the area.

Capital

Honiara

Head of State

King Charles III

Head of Government

Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele

last updated:

29 November, 2024

Australia

Australia strikes US$118 million policing deal with China-friendly Solomons

Australian PM Albanese called the pact a ‘new foundation’ for Canberra’s security ties with Honiara as Beijing’s clout in the Pacific grows.

20 Dec 2024 - 1:40PMvideocam

US-China relations

As No 2 US envoy ends Pacific tour, Beijing scores a diplomatic win on Taiwan

1 Sep 2024 - 12:39AMvideocam

Solomon Islands

Australia strikes US$118 million policing deal with China-friendly Solomons

Australian PM Albanese called the pact a ‘new foundation’ for Canberra’s security ties with Honiara as Beijing’s clout in the Pacific grows.

As No 2 US envoy ends Pacific tour, Beijing scores a diplomatic win on Taiwan

Australia urged to cut fossil fuels as Pacific backs landmark policing plan

Australia pushes Pacific police force proposal to check China’s ambitions

Pacific leaders endorsed on Wednesday a plan creating a 200-officer police force to address security challenges and limit China’s reach.

China vows to help Fiji tackle climate change in push for greater Pacific role

President Xi Jinping made the pledge along with promises of economic support in a meeting with Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka

Kiribati’s pro-China government faces election test

The nation of roughly 120,000 residents switched ties from Taiwan to Beijing in 2019, and is considered strategic despite being small, because it is relatively close to the US state of Hawaii.

As China’s sway over Pacific islands grows, will Japan counter by aiding Palau?

Analysts think Tokyo will answer the island nation’s appeal for help monitoring Chinese vessels, as it has done so with others in the region.

Solomon Islands props up budget with China’s US$20 million injection

The Pacific nation’s PM announced the funding after talks with President Xi Jinping in Beijing, hailing China’s ‘transformative’ presence.

Solomon Islands ‘locks in’ China ties with another pro-Beijing prime minister

New prime minister Jeremiah Manele is expected to apply a “lighter touch” to ties with Beijing given the demand for greater transparency.

‘Geopolitics is at play’: Solomons’ pro-China PM not standing for new term

Solomon Islands incumbent PM Manasseh Sogavare said he would not be a candidate when lawmakers vote next week for a new prime minister, and his political party would instead back ex-Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele.

Solomon Islands’ pro-China PM fails to secure outright majority

Manasseh Sogavare’s Our Party has won 12 seats with six contests still in play, well short of a majority in the 50-seat parliament.

‘Calling for change’: will Solomon Islands lean closer to China after its polls?

Geopolitics looms large over the polls in Solomon Islands, where Beijing and Washington have been vying for influence for years. But for voters just struggling to make ends meet, Wednesday’s election may be decided by issues much closer to home.

Solomon Islands opposition figure sounds alarm on China meddling in elections

A torrent of Chinese aid and investment has flowed into the Pacific nation during Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare’s five years at the helm. He seeks re-election this week.

Solomon Islands prepares for election in shadow of China’s influence

The archipelago, one of the world’s least-developed countries, is the unlikely focal point of a diplomatic scramble pitting a rising China against Western rivals.

Japan may be making its biggest security move in the Pacific Islands since WWII

Talks on March 19 are expected to involve Japan’s Self-Defence Forces and police taking part in local and regional responses as well as training.

Solomon Islands’ pro-China leader pledges to continue Australia balancing act

Manasseh Sogavare alarmed Canberra and the US by signing a security pact with China, but has pledged to adopt a ‘friends to all’ approach to foreign policy.

Australia pledges aid to East Timor in bid to boost diplomatic ties in region

Canberra pledged A$35 million (US$23 million) for East Timor’s policing services and A$4 million to help Timorese workers integrate in Australia, as part of its commitment to boost ties in the Pacific region amid China’s growing influence.

Beijing protests to Papua New Guinea over riot harm to Chinese stores, citizens

PM James Marape calls state of emergency as Beijing asks PNG to ensure safety of its citizens and ‘penalise perpetrators severely’.

Solomon Islands hosts China-funded Pacific Games amid big-power rivalry

Solomon Islands’ PM Manasseh Sogavare has alarmed the West with his pro-Beijing engagement and increasingly authoritarian reflexes. He told This Week in Asia that Honiara’s ties with China ‘were never better’.

Cracks emerge in Pacific island unity as leaders skip meet amid US-China rivalry

The leaders of Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and Solomon Islands will not attend this week’s annual Pacific Islands Forum, which also counts Australia and New Zealand among its members.

US deal with Marshall Islands lapses without renewal, but talks continue

The Compact of Free Association pact, which has steered ties between Washington and the Marshall Islands since 1986, expired on Saturday.

China and US diplomats overseeing Asian affairs meet to discuss region

China’s Vice-Foreign Minister for Asia Sun Weidong meets Daniel Kritenbrink, US Assistant Secretary of State, for ‘candid, in-depth and constructive consultation’ on regional issues, including Taiwan and maritime issues.

Solomon Islands joins China-backed AIIB days after PM snubs Biden invite

COP28 president designate praises bank’s new climate action plan; new report questions AIIB accountability process.

Biden unveils Pacific nations aid, embassies as Solomons PM sits out

American leader extols ‘security, prosperity and dignity’ for Oceanic allies and partners in latest response to China’s decades-long inroads in region.

US ‘back in force’ in Pacific as Biden engages with regional leaders at summit

The White House is hosting Pacific island leaders on Monday as Biden promises to take US engagement in region to ‘next level’ but there are notable absences from the meeting.

‘Appalled’: Solomons joins China in blasting Japan over Fukushima water dump

Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare called on Japan to find other options and warned of effects on his South Pacific archipelago.

Biden to meet Pacific Island nations as US-China attention stays high

Summit between American president and region’s leaders will be second in a year as Washington seeks to counter Beijing’s push for clout.

Pacific Islands leaders meet amid political crisis

Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji and New Caledonia’s ruling FLNKS party are meeting to consider declaring a ‘region of peace and neutrality’, as the nations are at the centre of a geopolitical contest.