Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison arrived in the Solomon Islands yesterday, the first visit by an Australian leader in more than a decade as Western nations seek to rein in China’s influence in the Pacific.
The trip comes as the US and its regional allies try to ensure that Pacific nations with diplomatic links to Taiwan do not sever those in favor of ties with Beijing.
The Solomon Islands is one of six Pacific countries to recognize Taiwan, a policy now in question after recent elections.
Photo: AFP / Adam Taylor / Australian Prime Minister’s Office
Morrison flew into Honiara on his first overseas trip since winning re-election last month.
He did not make any public comments on arrival, but has said the visit will show Australia’s commitment to the region.
“The Pacific is front and center of Australia’s strategic outlook,” he said in a statement last week.
Morrison’s trip comes just a few days before a visit to the Solomon Islands by New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters, who is also to travel to Vanuatu this week.
Keen to undercut China’s Belt and Road Initiative, Australia has directed ever-larger amounts of its foreign aid to the Pacific.
It has offered Pacific countries up to A$3 billion (US$2.1 billion) in grants and loans to build infrastructure, as Morrison declared the region was “our patch.”
Canberra last year said it would spend A$139 million to develop undersea Internet cable links to Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, amid national security concerns about Chinese telecom Huawei Technologies Co (華為).
Australia became the first country to ban Huawei’s gear from its nascent broadband network, a step the US followed this year by effectively banning US firms from doing business with Huawei.
The issue of climate change, which has at times strained Australia’s relationship with its Pacific neighbors, is likely to feature prominently during the visit, Australian broadcaster SBS News said yesterday.
Solomon Islands lawmaker Peter Kenilorea Jr said he wanted Australia to show “stronger leadership” on climate change, SBS News journalist Pablo Vinales said in a tweet yesterday.
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off Yilan at 11:05pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter was located at sea, about 32.3km east of Yilan County Hall, at a depth of 72.8km, CWA data showed There were no immediate reports of damage. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Yilan County area on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. It measured 4 in other parts of eastern, northern and central Taiwan as well as Tainan, and 3 in Kaohsiung and Pingtung County, and 2 in Lienchiang and Penghu counties and 1
FOREIGN INTERFERENCE: Beijing would likely intensify public opinion warfare in next year’s local elections to prevent Lai from getting re-elected, the ‘Yomiuri Shimbun’ said Internal documents from a Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) company indicated that China has been using the technology to intervene in foreign elections, including propaganda targeting Taiwan’s local elections next year and presidential elections in 2028, a Japanese newspaper reported yesterday. The Institute of National Security of Vanderbilt University obtained nearly 400 pages of documents from GoLaxy, a company with ties to the Chinese government, and found evidence that it had apparently deployed sophisticated, AI-driven propaganda campaigns in Hong Kong and Taiwan to shape public opinion, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported. GoLaxy provides insights, situation analysis and public opinion-shaping technology by conducting network surveillance
‘POLITICAL GAME’: DPP lawmakers said the motion would not meet the legislative threshold needed, and accused the KMT and the TPP of trivializing the Constitution The Legislative Yuan yesterday approved a motion to initiate impeachment proceedings against President William Lai (賴清德), saying he had undermined Taiwan’s constitutional order and democracy. The motion was approved 61-50 by lawmakers from the main opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the smaller Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), who together hold a legislative majority. Under the motion, a roll call vote for impeachment would be held on May 19 next year, after various hearings are held and Lai is given the chance to defend himself. The move came after Lai on Monday last week did not promulgate an amendment passed by the legislature that
AFTERMATH: The Taipei City Government said it received 39 minor incident reports including gas leaks, water leaks and outages, and a damaged traffic signal A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off Taiwan’s northeastern coast late on Saturday, producing only two major aftershocks as of yesterday noon, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The limited aftershocks contrast with last year’s major earthquake in Hualien County, as Saturday’s earthquake occurred at a greater depth in a subduction zone. Saturday’s earthquake struck at 11:05pm, with its hypocenter about 32.3km east of Yilan County Hall, at a depth of 72.8km. Shaking was felt in 17 administrative regions north of Tainan and in eastern Taiwan, reaching intensity level 4 on Taiwan’s seven-tier seismic scale, the CWA said. In Hualien, the
RSS