According to South Pacific experts, Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavale could design a “fake flag” event to strengthen control of the Solomon Islands after his government has signed a secret security agreement with Beijing. there is. ..
If an agreement is reached, Beijing will establish a new positive position to claim control of the Indo-Pacific. The Solomon Islands were the site of the battle on Guadalcanal Island during World War II and affected the sea routes in the region, so they fought for teeth and nails.
Cleopascal, Associate Fellow of Chatham House’s Asia-Pacific program, said the leaked security deal was not surprising, but the latest “piece” in Beijing’s building hegemony in the South Pacific.
However, Prime Minister Sogavale warns that it could create a “security situation” that the incumbent prime minister could lose, an excuse, to invite Chinese personnel and security forces, make the country peaceful, and delay elections. did.
Solomon’s tensions continue after a fierce protest broke out in the capital Honiara in late November last year, killing three people and destroying the Chinatown area.
Ethnic tensions and dissatisfaction with national government performance were important factors, including explicit bribes to pro-Beijing politicians, but the relationship between Sogavale and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was also a source of fire.
“(Sogavare can say)” We need outside help to come to the country and create stability, and our friend China will come and do it, “Pascal said. I told the Epoch Times. “And it was then that they arrested their leader, the leader of Malaita, and forbade them from happening while in custody.”
State leader Daniel Suidani, the prime minister of Malaita, has categorically refused to follow the government’s move to reject Taiwan to accept diplomatic relations with Beijing, exacerbating Sogavale.
“This is a predictable and very bad road for the Solomon Islands people. If I knew it, the Australian intelligence and security community would know it,” Pascal said.
On March 24, the leaked “Framework Agreement on Security Cooperation between the Government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the Government of the Solomon Islands” began. Circulate online..
Article 1 of the Agreement states that the Solomon Islands can require China to “send police, armed police, gendarmerie and other law enforcement agencies and troops to the Solomon Islands to help maintain social order.” I am.
Article 2 states that Beijing “with the consent of the Solomon Islands, visits ships to provide logistical support in the Solomon Islands, and makes stopovers and transitions in the Solomon Islands, depending on their needs. And the relevant Chinese troops are available. ” This is to protect the safety of the Chinese and the major projects of the Solomon Islands. “
In addition, the Solomon Islands need to provide facilities and border entrances for “personnel and weapons, intelligence, and information support.”
The transaction also requires that the details of the support be kept confidential unless both parties agree to publish it to the media. The contract is set for 5 years and will be automatically renewed for another 5 years.
If the agreement is successful, the islands could also be deployed with Beijing-based troops and weapons. It extends the PLA’s reach beyond the South China Sea, just 1,700 kilometers from the northern Australian city of Cairns.
The CCP is already planning to upgrade the runways and bridges of Kiribati, a Pacific country 3,000 kilometers southwest of Hawaii. Such facilities will allow larger military aircraft to land.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters on March 25 that the new Solomons agreement was not dazzling and Australia remains a leader in the Pacific region through development assistance.
“Some people try to influence the area and pretend to be trying to build some sort of foothold,” he said. “And we are very aware of it, and that’s why we do the job. We are not completely free from that risk.”
Pascal said it was unwise to try to rival Beijing’s influential machines and instead force Australia to follow the 2000 Townsville Peace Agreement, which ended ongoing violence in the region. He called on the Sogavale government to put pressure on it.
“We will carry out the steps agreed by various states, including Malaita. There is a series of things that have already been negotiated. Everyone, including the government under the Sogavale administration, has signed,” she said.
“Sogavale and his MPs are given the option to’can trade with China or with other countries in the world,'” she added, Sogavale and his cabinet. He said he could lose the privileges granted in their relationship. With Australia.
Pascal said pressure could force Sogavale’s minister to intervene and prevent things from becoming “overkill.”
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Daniel Y. Teng is based in Sydney. He focuses on national politics, including federal politics, COVID-19 response, and relations between Australia and China. Do you have a hint? Contact him at [email protected]