Kaya Selby
RNZ Pacific journalist
Two recent official trips
by Solomon Islands’ leaders leave no clues as to where its
preference currently leans: China or the West.
A visit
by Solomons Prime Minister Matthew Wale to Washington DC
wraps up this week, off the back of a visit by Foreign
Minister Rick Houenipwela to Beijing last
week.
Houenipwela met with China’s top diplomat Wang
Yi, while Wale only met with the US’ second-top diplomat,
Christopher Landau.
With China, its signed an
agreement that frames negotiations for expanding trade and
facilitating investment by Chinese firms in Solomon
Islands.
The Chinese Embassy in Honiara described it
as “a new chapter” in the relationship between the two
countries, which went formal after Honiara ditched ties with
Taiwan in 2019.
“This agreement will deepen
cooperation in trade, investment, industrial and supply
chain development, creating new opportunities for
sustainable growth and common prosperity,” a statement
read.
In the meantime, a Ship Rider Agreement will be
signed in Honiara next week that allows the US Coast Guard
into Solomon Islands waters, alongside local
police.
Wale’s office said the agreement was expected
to strengthen joint maritime enforcement and surveillance
efforts.
“[Wale] highlighted the urgent need to
enhance security across the Pacific region … he emphasised
that the Pacific has become a growing transit route for
illicit activities.”
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Wale also walked away from his
talks with Landau with a US$6 million sweetener to remove
unexploded ordnances (UXO) left in the Solomons from World
War II.
Peace Corps return
Meanwhile, Landau
promised that the US Peace Corps, an agency facing massive
budget and staffing cuts, would return to Solomons’ shores
to help out with “community-based development, capacity
building and cross-cultural exchange”.
The 2000 coup
d’état in Solomon Islands and surrounding ethnic tensions
forced the evacuation of active Peace Corps volunteers,
suspending a programme that had seen more than 700 Americans
serve in the country over nearly three decades.
Wale
pronounced a “foreign policy reset” shortly after taking
office two months ago, holding talks with Australia in his
first overseas trip as prime minister, and speaking
positively about the prospect of a regional security deal
with Australia.
His government maintained its
“commitment to strengthening relations with all
international
partners.”
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