China-Solomons pact: US says lack of transparency is big concern about security agreement

Name: China confirms signing of Solomon Islands security pact, as US warns of regional instability
Uploaded: 2022-04-26T12:00:22.000Z
Duration: 2 min 17 s
Description: China confirms signing of Solomon Islands security pact, as US warns of regional instability

Daniel Kritenbrink says US does not ask countries to choose between the US and China but hopes they can decide while free from coercion

Assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific says US will respond to any attempt by Beijing to establish military presence or installation in Solomons

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A spokesman for China’s foreign ministry said on Monday that speculation China would build a military base in the Solomon Islands was “pure disinformation fabricated by a handful of people who harbour ulterior motives”. Photo: AP Photo

Amber Wang

Published: 8:00pm, 26 Apr 2022

China’s security agreement with the Solomon Islands shows a “complete lack of transparency”, and the US will respond to any attempt by Beijing to establish a military presence in the Pacific island country, a senior US official said on Tuesday.

Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, said the US did not ask countries to choose between the United States and China, but instead hoped all countries could make their own decisions free from coercion.

02:17

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

A high-level US delegation, led by National Security Council Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell, visited the Solomon Islands on Friday, days after Honiara confirmed it had signed a security agreement with Beijing. No details of the pact have been officially released by either party.

Kritenbrink said that during the meeting between US officials and the Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, the US said it would have “significant concerns” and would respond naturally if there were moves to establish a de facto permanent military presence, power projection capabilities or a military installation.

Daniel Kritenbrink, US assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, says the US will respond to attempts by China to establish a military presence in the Solomon Islands. Photo: YouTube

The purpose of the trip was to “communicate in a very candid way the concerns that we have about the security agreement that they concluded with China”, he said, adding that the Solomon Islands had given assurances there would be no such military base.

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