Jeremiah Manele praised China and indicated his country was keen to extend security and policing partnerships with the regional power — but will his words translate to more deals?
The prime minister of Solomon Islands was particularly quick to heap praise on the breakneck speed of development in China while touring a host of companies and institutions dotted across Fujian and Shandong provinces.
After admiring the massed towers and glittering lights of Xiamen and Fuzhou in the south, as well as the bustling city of Qingdao further north, Manele did not hold back.The prime minister was particularly effusive about what he saw in Fujian Province, where Chinese President Xi Jinping spent more than 15 years as a regional official. He even suggested that much of the credit lay with Xi, saying the "huge transformation" of Fujian was a "tremendous result of President Xi Jinping's early political career." Of course, praise costs nothing and it's not surprising to see Prime Minister Manele laying it on thick on this visit. Jeremiah Manele, second right, meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping, fourth left, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.The Solomon Islands government has bet big on China ever since it made the momentous decision in 2019 to switch diplomatic recognition to Beijing under Manele's predecessor, Manasseh Sogavare. Many in the Pacific Island country are quick to question the benefits of the switch, and say much of the largesse from Beijing over the last five years has been hoovered up by governing elites rather than everyday people. But faced with an anaemic economy and deepening budget woes, Manele still sees vast acres of opportunity across the expanse of the emerging great power. China is already the country's largest trading partner, but Manele is busily courting more Chinese investment in infrastructure, and has signalled he wants to lean on Chinese expertise to develop and grow new industries in his country.China was Manele's second destination as prime minister but his first overseas visit was his sojourn last month to Australia, where he publicly acknowledged Canberra's "concerns" about aspects of the flourishing bilateral relationship between Beijing and Honiara. Most of these "concerns" centre not on matters economic, but on rather thornier questions around security. And Manele did not just inspect automated container terminals, tech companies and fishery research institutes while in China. In Fuzhou, he also paid a visit to the China-Pacific Island Countries Police Training Center — a rather gleaming new facility that has been quietly set up as part of Beijing's broader push to cement itself as a security player in the Pacific.Pacific Minister Pat Conroy has said publicly that China should have "no role" in Pacific policing, while New Zealand has called Beijing's push "unnecessary and unwelcome." Australian Federal Police and Australian defence personnel with Solomon Islands police. Australia hopes to remain the Pacific's main security partner.While in Canberra, Manele seemed to plead for understanding from the Australian government on the subject, framing China's police training program not as a security initiative but rather as a mere "development" opportunity his country could not turn down. The prime minister said that cabinet would "review" the police training agreements in the wake of Australia once again raising its concerns. But he did not sound like a man who was on the brink of ditching the program while visiting the Fuzhou centre. The prime minister's office said he "praised CLT's assistance in ensuring the peaceful running of the successful 2023 Pacific Games in November last year and also the recent joint National General Elections" — which is strange given that Chinese police played only a minor role in the games and were barred from any operational role during the elections.Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele says he's asked Australia to help his country expand its police force after bilateral talks in Canberra.Manele also declared he was "impressed with the professionalism displayed by the Center and express the government's wish for the policing program between Solomon Islands and China to continue and deepen into the future". Australian officials might wince when they read that, but they are not hitting the panic button — at least not yet. They are quick to argue that when the rubber hits the road, Solomon Islands is still turning to Australia as its major security and policing partner. For example, they point out that Manele approached Anthony Albanese, rather than Xi Jinping, when he wanted help with his ambitious plan to double the size of the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force .In fact, on his recent trip to Australia, the prime minister visited a refurbished training facility being set up near Brisbane airport that could draw in officers from across the Pacific.If you squint a little and turn your head slightly, it's possible to see Manele's kind words in Fuzhou as little more than lip service, with the prime minister keeping China onside by praising their policing contributions while relegating Beijing firmly to the margins of Solomon Islands' national security.At the same time Jeremiah Manele was sitting down with Li Qiang in Beijing, China's Vice-Minister of Public Security Wang Zhizhong met with Acting Prime Minister Bradley Tovosia in Honiara to talk about the future.China sends a security delegation to Tonga ahead of the Pacific Islands Forum, as Australian officials remain suspicious of its motives.The Solomon Islands government said both men discussed "deepening police cooperation between China and Solomon Islands" as well as "assisting the country to improve its law enforcement capacity in a comprehensive and rapid manner". Even if Manele does merely want to preserve the status quo, there's no guarantee the Chinese authorities will be satisfied with that alone.Jeremiah Manele was not the only Pacific leader in China last week — Vanuatu PM Charlot Salwai also spent six days in the country on a long-awaited state visit. Much like Manele, Salwai was quick to praise China's development model, dwelling on the economic miracles achieved over the last four decades under the Chinese Communist Party. Again, this isn't surprising given how effectively Vanuatu has been able to bring in largesse from Beijing: just days before Salwai departed for China, it handed over aBut there is usually a quid pro quo in foreign affairs, and while praise might go some way, it does not stretch the distance. Even if you're deeply sceptical about the nightmare scenarios sketched out by Australian and US officials — who believe China is on the brink of securing a military foothold in the region — the joint statements issued in the wake of the Salwai and Manele visits are an illustration of where the balance of power lies. Both statements have almost identical sections touching on the most controversial issues, making it obvious that — at the very least — parts of the "joint" declarations were penned by China alone. For example, both Solomon Islands and Vanuatu said they "fully understand and support China's position on the South China Sea issue" while labelling "issues" on Taiwan, Hong Kong and Tibet as "internal matters for China to deal with." Solomon Islands and Vanuatu also threw their weight behind Beijing on the fraught question of Taiwan, declaring not just that the self-ruled island was part of China, but also that they backed its efforts to achieve national "reunification." The Pacific nations are hardly the first to do so: Beijing has managed to convince a host of developing nations to back similar language over the last year or so.Pacific governments have been adept at playing larger powers to extract benefits for both themselves and their people. But as the global strategic environment grows more uncertain and dangerous, that task will only become more difficult and fraught.Trump formally nominated as Republican presidential nominee as national convention gets underwayDonald Trump's close call has lifted the odds of his election … and a fresh inflation breakoutATO takes 'firmer' action against directors it says owe billions in tax and super, pushing insolvencies to GFC levelsWe came for the spectacle of a Trump rally. We left frazzled and shell-shocked Just after surviving a shooting, Trump's the star at the Republican National Convention. Here's what to expectTrump formally nominated as Republican presidential nominee as national convention gets underway On a trip to China, Solomon Islands' PM visited a shining example of Australia's concerns about Pacific security
Solomon Islands Vanuatu Xi Jingping Pat Conroy Jeremiah Manele Anthony Albanese Charlot Salwai Chinese Communist Party Pacific Police Security Bradley Tovosia Beijing
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