2 US House members visit Solomon Islands but prime minister is ‘unavailable’ for meeting

Trip comes just weeks after Chinese President Xi Jinping and the Solomons’ leader held talks in Beijing, pledging to form ‘greater synergy’ between the nations
Washington has been stepping up its engagement in the Pacific Islands, including reopening its embassy in the Solomons

US-China relations

Bochen Hanin Washington

Published: 6:32am, 17 Aug 2023

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Two Republicans from the US House of Representatives, one a member of the select committee on the Chinese Communist Party, met with opposition leaders in the Solomon Islands this week as part of an Indo-Pacific trip that also included a visit to Australia.

They were unable to see the Solomons’ prime minister, Manasseh Sogavare, according to a press release from House committee, which said he was “unable to make time in his schedule”.

Neither the select committee nor the two officials responded to requests for comment on the reasons provided by the Solomon Islands, and representatives from the Solomon Islands in the US could not be reached.

Representative Neal Dunn of Florida and Aumua Amata of American Samoa, a non-voting delegate to the US House, made their trip just weeks after Sogavare met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.

02:17

China confirms signing of Solomon Islands security pact, as US warns of regional instability

On July 10, Sogavare and Xi pledged to establish a “comprehensive strategic partnership” and form “greater synergy” between China’s Belt and Road Initiative and the islands’ 2035 development strategy. The two sides also signed a raft of deals covering development, trade, infrastructure and policing – allowing China to maintain a police presence in the Solomon Islands for another three years.

The US visit came as Washington steps up its engagement in the Pacific Islands.

In February, the US announced the reopening of an embassy in the Solomon Islands after a 30-year absence. In May, the US opened an embassy in Tonga, which Secretary of State Antony Blinken dedicated in July while in the country. And embassies are forthcoming in Vanuatu and Kiribati, according to the US State Department.

Since 2022, the US government has also launched initiatives that include a return of the Peace Corps to the region and bringing midlevel professionals from the Pacific for a fellowship at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in the fall.

As US Congress debates budget, Pacific island nations watch with concern

Congress has also shown a desire to increase engagement, with provisions to increase US diplomatic presence in the region included in both House and Senate versions of its annual must-pass defence bill.

“Like a viper slithering around its prey, the CCP is coiling around Solomon Islands in hopes of tightening their grip on the Indo-Pacific region,” Dunn said on Wednesday.

“We must preserve our relationships with our friends in Solomon Islands to ensure the Indo-Pacific remains stable and peaceful.”

Dunn and Amata met with opposition figures including Matthew Wale of the Solomon Islands Democratic Party, Rick Houenipwela of the Democratic Alliance Party and Peter Kenilorea Jnr of the United Party. Their trip included meetings with health and development personnel, as well as Daniel Suidani, a former premier of Malaita province and outspoken critic of the Solomon Islands’ closer ties with China who was ousted in February in a no-confidence vote.

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare (right) and his Chinese counterpart Li Qiang take part in a welcome ceremony in Beijing on July 10. Photo: Reuters

Concerns have been raised in recent years about the Solomon Islands’ cozying up to Beijing. In 2019, Honiara switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China, leaving its fellow Pacific Island nations Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau and Tuvalu as part of the 13 remaining countries that still recognise Taipei.

Last year the Solomon Islands government was criticised by the United States for signing a secretive security pact with China. Though there was speculation that this would allow China to establish a military base in the Solomons, Beijing and Honiara have denied that possibility.

China is the Solomon Islands’ biggest trading partner and became its second largest official development assistance donor in 2021, according to the Lowy Institute, an Australian think tank.