Lawmakers in the Solomon Islands elected former Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele as the country’s new PM following general elections last month. Former PM Manasseh Sogavare withdrew from the contest and supported Manele’s bid after their party failed to secure a majority in the elections. (The Guardian)
Much like the rest of the Pacific Island nations, politics in the Solomon Islands is increasingly seen by outside observers through the lens of the U.S.-China rivalry. The region has become a major battleground for the two powers due its strategic location. As a result, Beijing and Washington—alongside several regional powers—have ramped up their diplomatic engagement, economic partnerships and, most importantly, security agreements with several Pacific Island nations.
Now, Manele’s election as PM all but assures that the Solomon Islands will continue the Beijing-friendly policies that the country has adopted in recent years, beginning with the switch of diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 2019. Under the leadership of Sogavare—with Manele as his foreign minister—the country also expanded economic partnerships with Beijing and hosted the Pacific Games, with China paying half the cost.
Most notably, Sogavare struck a secret security pact with China in 2022, one of the factors that has moved the Solomon Islands, and the rest of the Pacific Islands more broadly, higher up on Washington’s agenda. U.S. President Joe Biden has since hosted two high-level summits of Pacific Island leaders in Washington, reopened the U.S. Embassy in the Solomon Islands and promised about $7.2 billion in new funding for the region.
Many Pacific Island nations have learned to exploit the U.S.-China rivalry for their own gain, using the competition to gain visibility on the international stage and secure funding for development. But it can also be a double-edged sword. The pressure to take sides in the U.S.-China rivalry can have a destabilizing effect on domestic politics, as it can amplify existing local divisions. The Solomon Islands saw that dynamic play out in 2021, when perceptions that China had become too involved in the country’s politics fueled riots in the capital’s Chinatown.
As Catherine Wilson wrote in November during the Pacific Games, growing exasperation with Beijing among the Solomon Islands’ population has opened a door for the U.S., as well as its allies, with France, Australia and Japan in particular also attempting to make inroads in the region. But to win sympathy, the West will have to avoid the mistakes it has made in the past, and “build trust and contribute to outcomes that genuinely advance islanders’ interests and improve their lives,” as Wilson wrote.
About 4 in 10 people in the U.S. now consider China to be an enemy, reaching the highest level in five years and up from 1 in 4 two years ago, according to an annual Pew Research Center survey released yesterday. The report also found that roughly half of Americans think that limiting China’s power and influence should be a top U.S. foreign policy priority.