Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison yesterday said that his nation would boost spending on infrastructure in the Solomon Islands, but added that the increased aid commitment was not linked to the South Pacific nation’s diplomatic allegiance to Taiwan.
Morrison highlighted the importance that he places on Australia’s bilateral relationship with the impoverished near-neighbor by making the Solomon Islands the destination of his first international trip since he was re-elected on May 18.
Morrison announced after meeting Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare in the capital, Honiara, that Australia would provide A$250 million (US$173.65 million) in aid over the next decade for infrastructure spending.
Photo: AFP
The Solomons’ diplomatic recognition of Taiwan was an issue in the country’s April elections that brought Sogavare to power.
His predecessor, former Solomon Islands prime minister Rick Hou, had promised to consider switching recognition to China, the Solomons’ biggest export market, if he were re-elected.
The US government has urged Pacific nations not to bow to Chinese pressure by withdrawing recognition of Taiwan.
Australia would not advise the Solomon Islands government on whether they should maintain their country’s diplomatic alliance with Taiwan, Morrison said.
“It’s not our place to provide advice or guidance on those decisions,” Morrison told reporters.
After Indonesia, the Solomon Islands get the third-largest share of Australian aid money, followed by Papua New Guinea.
The two prime ministers said in a joint statement that the infrastructure aid would complement the A$2 billion announced in November as part of the Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific, which would provide grants and long-term loans for investments in telecommunications, energy, transport and water infrastructure.
Australia’s new emphasis on infrastructure investment comes as its island neighbors increasingly looking to China for aid through Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Morrison’s trip came as three Chinese warships arrived in Sydney Harbor on a four-day visit.
The warships came to Sydney on their way home from the Middle East, a reciprocal visit after Australian warships had traveled to China, Morrison said.
“It may have been a surprise to others, but it certainly wasn’t a surprise to the government,” Morrison said, trying to allay concerns. “We have known about that for some time.”
Morrison described it as a “reciprocal visit because Australian naval vessels have visited China,” adding: “They were returning after a counter drug trafficking operation in the Middle East.”
“Chinese naval visits to Australia have typically been a lone frigate, not a task group with an amphibious assault ship and 700 personnel,” tweeted Rory Medcalf, head of the National Security College at Australian National University. “Sydney is hardly a convenient stopover on their way home from the Gulf of Aden. What’s the story here?”
Additional reporting by AFP
An endangered baby pygmy hippopotamus that shot to social media stardom in Thailand has become a lucrative source of income for her home zoo, quadrupling its ticket sales, the institution said Thursday. Moo Deng, whose name in Thai means “bouncy pork,” has drawn tens of thousands of visitors to Khao Kheow Open Zoo this month. The two-month-old pygmy hippo went viral on TikTok and Instagram for her cheeky antics, inspiring merchandise, memes and even craft tutorials on how to make crocheted or cake-based Moo Dengs at home. A zoo spokesperson said that ticket sales from the start of September to Wednesday reached almost
‘BARBAROUS ACTS’: The captain of the fishing vessel said that people in checkered clothes beat them with iron bars and that he fell unconscious for about an hour Ten Vietnamese fishers were violently robbed in the South China Sea, state media reported yesterday, with an official saying the attackers came from Chinese-flagged vessels. The men were reportedly beaten with iron bars and robbed of thousands of dollars of fish and equipment on Sunday off the Paracel Islands (Xisha Islands, 西沙群島), which Taiwan claims, as do Vietnam, China, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines. Vietnamese media did not identify the nationalities of the attackers, but Phung Ba Vuong, an official in central Quang Ngai province, told reporters: “They were Chinese, [the boats had] Chinese flags.” Four of the 10-man Vietnamese crew were rushed
CHINESE ICBM: The missile landed near the EEZ of French Polynesia, much to the surprise and concern of the president, who sent a letter of protest to Beijing Fijian President Ratu Wiliame Katonivere called for “respect for our region” and a stop to missile tests in the Pacific Ocean, after China launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). In a speech to the UN General Assembly in New York on Thursday, Katonivere recalled the Pacific Ocean’s history as a nuclear weapons testing ground, and noted Wednesday’s rare launch by China of an ICBM. “There was a unilateral test firing of a ballistic missile into the Pacific Ocean. We urge respect for our region and call for cessation of such action,” he said. The ICBM, carrying a dummy warhead, was launched by the
As violence between Israel and Hezbollah escalates, Iran is walking a tightrope by supporting Hezbollah without being dragged into a full-blown conflict and playing into its enemy’s hands. With a focus on easing its isolation and reviving its battered economy, Iran is aware that war could complicate efforts to secure relief from crippling sanctions. Cross-border fire between Israel and Hezbollah, sparked by Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7 last year, has intensified, especially after last week’s sabotage on Hezbollah’s communications that killed 39 people. Israeli airstrikes on Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon followed, killing hundreds. Hezbollah retaliated with rocket barrages. Despite the surge in
RSS