The president of Micronesia urged the Solomon Islands to reconsider entering a security alliance with China as the United States sent delegates to the nation.
“China has seized opportunities to expand its influence at a time when the U.S. and other countries have not been as engaged economically in the Pacific islands,” Elizabeth Wishnick, an expert on Chinese foreign policy at Montclair State University in New Jersey, told the Associated Press.
China and the Solomon Islands are nearing the finalization of a security agreement, the AP reported. The reason for China’s push for the agreement is unclear. Concern has increased over Chinese influence expanding in the south Pacific. A leaked copy of the agreement showed that Chinese warships could use the Solomon Islands for replenishment, and China could send armed forces there to assist with maintaining order.
The Solomon Islands changed the country's diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to Beijing in 2019, a move that resulted in riots in the nation, according to the AP.
David W. Panuelo, president of the Federated States of Micronesia, said “such a novel and unprecedented security agreement between China and Solomon Islands poses a risk of increasing geopolitical tensions across the blue Pacific continent,” according to a March 31 release from the government of the Federated States of Micronesia.
He also drew on examples from World War II, referring to a time when the island nations of the Pacific saw a great deal of bloodshed after being caught between warring countries.
“I am confident that neither of us wishes to see a conflict of that scope or scale ever again," he said in the release.
The U.S. is sending Kurt Campbell, who serves as the U.S. National Security Council Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific, to visit the country in April, ABC News reported. He will be joined by Daniel Kritenbrink, a top State Department official.
