Pacific Islands delay security plan that could open door to China
The Melanesian Spearhead Group, which includes Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and Fiji, had been negotiating its first joint security framework, focused on maritime security.
A meeting of the group's leaders on Monday in Fiji delayed a decision, with Papua New Guinea's Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko telling Reuters the security strategy was yet to be agreed on.
Discussions over Taiwan, among other matters, and how to accommodate the different positions of members was challenging, he said on Thursday.
The inter-government group, courted by Beijing which funded its headquarters in Vanuatu, has previously said it would consider China as a security partner.
The Pacific's bigger diplomatic bloc, the 18-member Pacific Islands Forum, has rejected China security ties and said instead the Pacific should provide its own security.
Among the Melanesian Spearhead Group nations, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu are seen as the closest to Beijing with policing ties, while Papua New Guinea has security deals with the United States and Australia, and Fiji has a defence partnership with Australia.
Australia said on Thursday it would assist the Pacific Islands to counter illegal fishing by doubling funding to A$477 million ($312 million) for aerial maritime surveillance across millions of km (miles) of the Pacific, using civilian planes and drones.
China, which operates the biggest fishing fleets, demonstrated its coast guard capabilities to 10 Pacific Islands ministers last month, prompting concern from some regional officials it may start patrolling the South Pacific, where the United States Coast Guard has increased activity.
Australia's Pacific Minister Pat Conroy attended the Melanesian Spearhead Group meeting for the first time, sitting across the room from China's ambassador Zhou Jian at the Fiji discussions.
China's embassy in Fiji said in a statement that the group was a "crucial platform for promoting regional peace and stability".
In the meeting, Conroy highlighted that Australia is the largest trading partner of every member of the group.
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele said in a statement that progress was made on the security strategy, with "a firm commitment to collaborate with member countries and associate partners to enhance stability and peace throughout the region". He did not specific which partners.
In the Solomon Islands on Thursday, Conroy said Australia will provide 60 police vehicles, cyber security support and road upgrades for Honiara to host the Pacific Islands Forum leaders meeting in September.
"The Pacific is best served by Pacific-led institutions and processes," he said in a statement.
Solomon Islands is yet to formally respond to Australia's offer in December of A$100 million to expand its police force, Conroy said in a television interview.
"I made it clear that I don't think that China should be involved in policing in the Pacific," he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Solomon Islands said it would fill any security gaps by seeking assistance from Melanesian countries, he added.
($1 = 1.5312 Australian dollars)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
4 days ago
- The Guardian
Tuvalu considers pulling out of Pacific leaders' summit amid China-linked power struggle
Tuvalu's prime minister Feletei Teo said his country may pull out of the region's top political meeting next month, after host nation Solomon Islands moved to block all external partners – including China, US and Taiwan – from attending. The Pacific Islands Forum leaders meeting will be held in Honiara in September. On 7 August, Solomon Islands prime minister Jeremiah Manele told parliament that no dialogue partners would be invited to the annual gathering. Countries outside the Pacific, known as 'dialogue partners,' have attended the forum since 1989, to work with Pacific leaders and contribute to discussions around development and regional security. While not an official partner, Taiwan has attended the meetings as a 'development partner' for more than three decades. The decision by Honiara, a close ally of Beijing, has fuelled speculation the move was aimed at keeping Taiwan out of the meeting. It has raised questions over China's growing sway in Pacific diplomacy and whether regional unity can hold. Tuvalu, along with the Marshall Islands and Palau, are the only Pacific countries that maintain diplomatic ties with Taiwan, in what Beijing views as an affront to its One China principle. In an interview with the Guardian, Teo said he would wait to see how other Pacific leaders respond before deciding whether or not to attend the forum next month, expressing 'disappointment' at the last-minute exclusion of external countries. 'The region does not need these kinds of distractions,' Teo said. 'We have far more important issues to focus on, rather than letting ourselves be pressured from outside.' Teo said he had written to Manele outlining concerns around the inconvenient timing of the decision, and his 'difficulties supporting the justification' behind the move. 'We'll … see what the rest of the leaders' response is to the proposal by the Solomons, and then we'll make our decision,' he said. 'I'll wait for the final decision on this arrangement, and then reconsider my participation,' he said. The annual forum is the main mechanism through which leaders define region-wide policy agendas. Teo added he 'won't be surprised' if China was behind the decision to block partners from the forum, saying the unusual move broke with decades of precedent in the region. 'There is no denying that China is trying to extend its footprint in the Pacific, and so is the US,' Teo said. 'My own personal view is that we do need their development assistance, but we do not need the competition and conflict overshadowing our development agenda in the Pacific.' The Guardian contacted China's embassy in Honiara for comment. A US state department spokesperson said Washington was 'disappointed' by the move to exclude partners, and reaffirmed support for the attendance of all partners, including Taiwan, at the forum. 'All [forum] partners, and that includes Taiwan, should be invited to participate … regardless of where it is hosted – just as countries that maintain diplomatic ties with Taiwan invite all dialogue partners, including China,' the spokesperson said. Taiwan said it 'urges that that existing arrangements be maintained', adding that its participation at the Pacific meetings would 'further strengthen cooperation'. Not all of Taiwan's Pacific allies have opposed the decision to exlude foreign attenders to the forum. Palau, which will host the forum in 2026, says it 'respects and acknowledges' Solomon Islands' decision to block all foreign attendees, with the office of the president saying it allows members 'to focus on the critical intra-regional issues at this year's forum'. Solomon Islands switched diplomatic allegiances from Taiwan to China in 2019 and three years later, the countries signed a controversial security pact . Honiara has also received significant Chinese funding, including a recent $US1m donation to buy 27 cars to transport delegates during the forum. Dr Sarina Theys, senior lecturer in diplomacy and international affairs at the University of the South Pacific, said Solomon Islands' decision may be an attempt to avoid openly choosing between China and Taiwan. 'The only way to do that is then to just not invite anyone,' Theys said. Niuone Eliuta, first secretary at the Tuvalu High Commission in New Zealand, said he had 'no doubt China is behind this decision' to block external partners from the upcoming forum. 'This day and age China is very much influencing what's going on in the Pacific,' Eliuta said, adding that excluding donor partners could mean countries miss out on vital support such as climate funding. 'This is a temporary fix, moving development dialogue partners out of the Solomon Islands,' Eliuta said. 'I just hope no countries break away from PIF.' Concerns over Beijing's influence on the Forum are not new. At last year's meeting in Tonga, segments of the Pacific leader's communique that referenced Taiwan were altered, a decision many believe to be an outcome of China's influence. In 2022, two Chinese defence attaches were ejected from the Forum's meeting in Suva while caught listening to a visual address given by US vice-president Kamala Harris.
The Guardian
4 days ago
- The Guardian
Tuvalu considers pulling out of Pacific leaders' summit amid China-linked power struggle
Tuvalu's prime minister Feletei Teo said his country may pull out of the region's top political meeting next month, after host nation Solomon Islands moved to block all external partners – including China, US and Taiwan – from attending. The Pacific Islands Forum leaders meeting will be held in Honiara in September. On 7 August, Solomon Islands prime minister Jeremiah Manele told parliament that no dialogue partners would be invited to the annual gathering. Countries outside the Pacific, known as 'dialogue partners,' have attended the forum since 1989, to work with Pacific leaders and contribute to discussions around development and regional security. While not an official partner, Taiwan has attended the meetings as a 'development partner' for more than three decades. The decision by Honiara, a close ally of Beijing, has fuelled speculation the move was aimed at keeping Taiwan out of the meeting. It has raised questions over China's growing sway in Pacific diplomacy and whether regional unity can hold. Tuvalu, along with the Marshall Islands and Palau, are the only Pacific countries that maintain diplomatic ties with Taiwan, in what Beijing views as an affront to its One China principle. In an interview with the Guardian, Teo said he would wait to see how other Pacific leaders respond before deciding whether or not to attend the forum next month, expressing 'disappointment' at the last-minute exclusion of external countries. 'The region does not need these kinds of distractions,' Teo said. 'We have far more important issues to focus on, rather than letting ourselves be pressured from outside.' Teo said he had written to Manele outlining concerns around the inconvenient timing of the decision, and his 'difficulties supporting the justification' behind the move. 'We'll … see what the rest of the leaders' response is to the proposal by the Solomons, and then we'll make our decision,' he said. 'I'll wait for the final decision on this arrangement, and then reconsider my participation,' he said. The annual forum is the main mechanism through which leaders define region-wide policy agendas. Teo added he 'won't be surprised' if China was behind the decision to block partners from the forum, saying the unusual move broke with decades of precedent in the region. 'There is no denying that China is trying to extend its footprint in the Pacific, and so is the US,' Teo said. 'My own personal view is that we do need their development assistance, but we do not need the competition and conflict overshadowing our development agenda in the Pacific.' The Guardian contacted China's embassy in Honiara for comment. A US state department spokesperson said Washington was 'disappointed' by the move to exclude partners, and reaffirmed support for the attendance of all partners, including Taiwan, at the forum. 'All [forum] partners, and that includes Taiwan, should be invited to participate … regardless of where it is hosted – just as countries that maintain diplomatic ties with Taiwan invite all dialogue partners, including China,' the spokesperson said. Taiwan said it 'urges that that existing arrangements be maintained', adding that its participation at the Pacific meetings would 'further strengthen cooperation'. Not all of Taiwan's Pacific allies have opposed the decision to exlude foreign attenders to the forum. Palau, which will host the forum in 2026, says it 'respects and acknowledges' Solomon Islands' decision to block all foreign attendees, with the office of the president saying it allows members 'to focus on the critical intra-regional issues at this year's forum'. Solomon Islands switched diplomatic allegiances from Taiwan to China in 2019 and three years later, the countries signed a controversial security pact . Honiara has also received significant Chinese funding, including a recent $US1m donation to buy 27 cars to transport delegates during the forum. Dr Sarina Theys, senior lecturer in diplomacy and international affairs at the University of the South Pacific, said Solomon Islands' decision may be an attempt to avoid openly choosing between China and Taiwan. 'The only way to do that is then to just not invite anyone,' Theys said. Niuone Eliuta, first secretary at the Tuvalu High Commission in New Zealand, said he had 'no doubt China is behind this decision' to block external partners from the upcoming forum. 'This day and age China is very much influencing what's going on in the Pacific,' Eliuta said, adding that excluding donor partners could mean countries miss out on vital support such as climate funding. 'This is a temporary fix, moving development dialogue partners out of the Solomon Islands,' Eliuta said. 'I just hope no countries break away from PIF.' Concerns over Beijing's influence on the Forum are not new. At last year's meeting in Tonga, segments of the Pacific leader's communique that referenced Taiwan were altered, a decision many believe to be an outcome of China's influence. In 2022, two Chinese defence attaches were ejected from the Forum's meeting in Suva while caught listening to a visual address given by US vice-president Kamala Harris.
The Independent
09-08-2025
- The Independent
Commercial fishing in a vast Pacific nature area is halted after a judge blocks a Trump order
Commercial fishing that recently resumed in a vast protected area of the Pacific Ocean must halt once again, after a judge in Hawaii sided this week with environmentalists challenging a Trump administration rollback of federal ocean protections. The remote Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument is home to turtles, marine mammals and seabirds, which environmental groups say will get snagged by longline fishing, an industrial method involving baited hooks from lines 60 miles (about 100 kilometers) or longer. President Donald Trump 's executive order to allow this and other types of commercial fishing in part of the monument changed regulations without providing a process for public comment and rulemaking and stripped core protections from the monument, the groups argued in a lawsuit. U.S. District Judge Micah W. J. Smith granted a motion by the environmentalists on Friday. The ruling means boats catching fish for sale will need to immediately cease fishing in waters between 50 and 200 nautical miles (93 kilometers to 370 kilometers) around Johnston Atoll, Jarvis Island and Wake Island, said Earthjustice, an environmental law organization representing the plaintiffs. U.S. Justice Department attorneys representing the government did not immediately return an email message seeking comment on Saturday. Trump has said the U.S. should be 'the world's dominant seafood leader,' and on the same day of his April executive order, he issued another one seeking to boost commercial fishing by peeling back regulations and opening up harvesting in previously protected areas. President George W. Bush created the marine monument in 2009. It consists of about 500,000 square miles (1.3 million square kilometers) in the remote central Pacific Ocean southwest of Hawaii. President Barack Obama expanded it in 2014. Soon after Trump's executive order, the National Marine Fisheries Service sent a letter to fishing permit holders giving them the green light to fish commercially in the monument's boundaries, Earthjustice's lawsuit says. Fishing resumed within days, the group said. Government attorneys say the fisheries service's letter merely notified commercial fishers of a change that had already taken place through Trump's authority to remove the prohibition on commercial fishing in certain areas. Earthjustice challenged that letter, and by granting the motion in their favor, the federal judge found the government had chosen not to defend its letter on the merits and forfeited that argument. Smith also ruled against the government's other defenses, that the plaintiffs lacked standing to challenge the letter and that the court lacked jurisdiction over the matter. David Henkin, an Earthjustice attorney, said Smith's ruling requires the government to go through a process to determine what kind of fishing, and under what conditions, can happen in monument waters in a way that wouldn't destroy the area. Members of Hawaii's longline fishing industry say they have made numerous gear adjustments and changes over the years, such as circle hooks, to avoid that. The lawsuit says allowing commercial fishing in the monument expansion would also harm the 'cultural, spiritual, religious, subsistence, educational, recreational, and aesthetic interests' of a group of Native Hawaiian plaintiffs who are connected genealogically to the Indigenous peoples of the Pacific.
