Guancha, a Shanghai based news and commentary aggregation service in China, reported that, recently, the Solomon Islands signed a police assistance treaty with China. and “some people got really worried.”
China’s Embassy in the Solomon Islands reported that, on March 14, China’s police advisory team and the Solomon Islands police held an opening ceremony for a Sino-Solomon Islands Police Training Class. Hon. Anthony Veke, Minister of the Police of the Solomon Islands spoke at the ceremony. He expressed sincere gratitude to China for providing COVID prevention materials, police equipment, and police training. He hoped all trainees will proactively study China’s police knowledge, skills, and tactics, efficiently use China provided equipment, and quickly improve their skills in handling riots and sudden events.
On March 22, the Solomon Islands Ministry of Police website showed that its police in the training had started using the simulated guns that China had provided.
The Guancha article then stated, “Some people got really worried” about the cooperation plan. Both the Australian and New Zealand governments expressed their “concerns” about the impact of the Sino-Solomon Islands military cooperation on the (South Pacific’s) regional security.
Reuters reported that the Solomon Islands government confirmed that it was “diversifying the country’s security partnership including that with China,” and that it would sign off on a number of agreements with Beijing “to further create a secure and safe environment for local and foreign investments.” Reuters later reported on a leaked draft security treaty that would allow China’s armed police and its military to protect Chinese projects that are in the Solomon Islands.
Source:
1. Guancha, March 25, 2022
https://www.guancha.cn/internation/2022_03_25_631859.shtml
2. Reuter, March 25, 2022
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/03/25/australia-nz-concerned-as-solomon-islands-confirm-china-security-deal.html
3. Reuter, March 28, 2022
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/solomons-prime-minister-says-will-not-pick-sides-confirms-security-negotiations-2022-03-28/