The visit to Honiara by senior US officials including the Indo-Pacl aidific coordinator of the National Security Council, Kurt Campbell, came too late to prevent the signing of a security pact between Solomon Islands and China.
During talks with the Solomon Islands Government, the US officials representing the US White House promised to bring forward the re-establishment of a US embassy in Honiara and to provide the country with more medical aid and assistance in areas such as unexploded ordnance, vaccines and medical support.
James Carouso, a former acting US ambassador to Australia, is reported to have said, “We haven’t had an embassy in the Solomon Islands for a very long time.”
“You can’t treat a country with neglect, or outsource your relationships, certainly not if you want to be an influence in the region, without having a presence on the ground.
“So, yeah, that was, I think, a mistake for the United States over a long time.”
The Australian Coalition frontbencher Simon Birmingham supported the deeper engagement from the United States.
“We welcome deeper engagement by all of our partners in the Pacific,” he said
The Shadow Minister for Education in Australia, Tanya Plibersek, also welcomed the move to reopen a US embassy in Solomon Islands.
Mr Carouso also reportedy said, “It is was now up to the US and Australia to ensure the “pact” was not “abused” by China. “This is going to be a multi-act play and this is act one,”
“So, I think - for Australia, United States, Japan, the other Western democracies, the other Pacific Island nations - they should try and work with the Solomons to make sure act two is peaceful, and protects Solomon Islands’ sovereignty and protects the sovereignty and freedom of decision of other island states in the region.”
Quoting from a news story relayed today by ABC, Australia.
Yours sincerely
Frank Short
