The purchase would give China control of an island in the Solomons with a port that could be used immediately for large vessels, an airstrip, and large areas of land, the Australian government is warned.
A Chinese state-owned company is negotiating to buy a deep-water port and World War II airstrip in Solomon Islands, as new documents detail how money from Beijing has helped keep the Pacific nation's controversial leader in power.
A delegation from the state-owned China Forestry Group Corporation visited the island in 2019 and, according to those present, showed little interest in the trees. Instead, one member of the group pointedly asked: "how long is the wharf and how deep is the water?".
That was in the lead up to a vote of no confidence, which could have toppled the Prime Minister and undermined Beijing's ambitions in the tiny Pacific nation. The list of MPs paid in that round was almost identical to the one four months earlier, except the name of the one MP who left the government was crossed out.The only other name crossed out was an MP who had recently died.
"I think we have to look with new eyes at the way that bases can be developed for Chinese interests in the Pacific," he said. In late May, as talks with China Forestry Group Corporation continued, members of the plantation company's board, Kolombangara Forests Products Ltd , wrote to Foreign Minister Penny Wong about the "risks/strategic threats" it posed to Australia.It urged the Australian government to provide financial assistance to "prevent China taking control of the port and airstrip areas and establishing a base that can easily be done under the cover of commercial development".
Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs wrote back to the board members on Friday and said it would not be intervening.When asked how worried he was about a Chinese buyer coming in, KFPL general manager Edwin Schramm said there was some concern on the island.
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