Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - The leaders of Samoa and New Zealand said on Tuesday that China's bid to establish a security pact wi...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - The leaders of Samoa and New Zealand said on Tuesday that China's bid to establish a security pact with Pacific island governments should be reviewed by a regional forum, weeks after the Solomon Islands provoked outrage by signing a contract with China.
The Solomon Islands' security treaty with China caught the Pacific islands and its former friends, including the United States, Australia, and New Zealand, off surprise as China strives to expand its influence in the region.
"The concerns need to be evaluated in the broader context of what we have in place and what we want to do in terms of security provisions for the region," Fiame Naomi Mata'afa, Samoa's prime minister, said during a news conference alongside her New Zealand colleague.
The forum's leaders will meet in Fiji in mid-July for their first face-to-face meeting since 2019.
China has dismissed criticism of its accord with the Solomon Islands, claiming that it poses no military danger and that stronger connections benefit everyone, and is pursuing a plan for a regional treaty involving policing, security, and data communication cooperation with nearly a dozen Pacific countries.
Last month, Pacific leaders met with a top Chinese official to discuss the proposal, but they did not agree to it.
"The group of countries decided that the appropriate mode of consideration for these types of suggestions should be delivered through the forum secretary," Mata'afa explained.
The Pacific Islands Forum, according to regional accords, is where security should be handled, according to New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
"As a forum, we'll get together, address these topics, and, perhaps, reach an agreement," she said.
However, reaching an agreement on China will be difficult given that four members of the forum – Palau, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, and Tuvalu – recognise Taiwan rather than Beijing.
