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Solomon Islands
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Solomon Islands

Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
The Solomon Islands is a nation composed of hundreds of islands in the South Pacific. In 2022, it signed a security pact with China, causing uproar among some of its neighbours, including Australia, and concern for countries such as the US that have strategic interests in the area.
Capital
Honiara
Head of State
King Charles III
Head of Government
Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele
The port in Honiara, capital city of Solomon Islands in April 2024. Photo: AFP
Pacific nations

Solomon port plans mark US reset of ‘anaemic’ Pacific ties

The move aims to ensure Honiara partners with Western allies in sectors with security implications, analysts say.

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Pacific nations

China’s missile test exposes lack of unity among Pacific island nations

US-China relations

Top Chinese South Pacific security partner to let US patrol its waters

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Science

China’s AI weather warning system Mazu expanding across Global South

The system has been designed to provide ‘tailored’ services that help developing countries better prepare for extreme weather events.

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The weather warning system on display at the World AI Conference in Shanghai last week. Photo: Getty Images
China’s military

Opinion | China’s missile test from a submarine is no guarantee of regional stability

Beijing’s ICBM test from a nuclear-powered submarine is a win from a defence perspective but comes with greater responsibilities.

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SCMP Highlights

Chinese scientist sodium battery leap; petition to boot Argentina: 7 highlights

From Hong Kong’s exceptional IB results to Louis Vuitton suing China’s trademark regulator, here are highlights from SCMP’s recent reporting.

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Pacific nations

China sends a message to Pacific islands amid unease over missile test

Solomons prime minister has pledged to review China pact while advancing talks on a comprehensive treaty with Australia.

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi holds talks in Beijing on Tuesday with Rick Houenipwela, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of the Solomon Islands. Photo: Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Australia

Australia, Fiji sign mutual defence pact to boost Pacific security

Australia has greatly upped its diplomatic efforts in the region following China’s secretive security deal with the Solomon Islands in 2022.

Pacific nations

Vanuatu bans ‘foreign’ military bases in new security pact with Australia

The treaty is the latest in a string of Pacific deals Australia has signed seeking to curb China’s expanding security influence.

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China education

‘Natural’ choice: why Unesco’s new STEM education centre is based in Shanghai

China is working with the UN agency to help the world’s least developed countries advance technical education and grow their talent pools.

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President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the Unesco headquarters in Paris on March 27, 2014. Photo: AFP
Pacific nations

Australia pledges US$1.7 million in aid after Cyclone Maila kills 11 in Pacific

Entire villages were destroyed in the storm, was briefly classified as a Category 5 cyclone.

A truck is engulfed by floodwaters brought on by heavy rains from tropical cyclone Maila in the Tinputz district of Northern Bougainville. Photo: AFP
Japan

Solomon Islands residents live in fear of WWII bomb explosions

With more people on the islands killed or injured due to the munitions, a UN team calls for international efforts to remove the danger.

Pacific nations

Solomon Islands’ defence force dream: an Australia-China flashpoint?

A military force would help quell unrest, but some say relying on Beijing for arms may make the Pacific nation an ‘enemy state’ of the West.

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China-Australia relations

Call for ‘Pacific Eyes’ intelligence body to offset China’s growing presence

Think tank proposes dedicated alliance – initially with Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Fiji – to avoid being ‘blindsided’.

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A new report from an Australian think tank suggests Australia and other Pacific nations form a network to help plug intelligence gaps, particularly amid what it called China’s “unprecedented security inroads” in the region. Photo: Australian Defence Force/AFP
New Zealand

New Zealand calls on US to counter China’s Pacific mineral push

New Zealand wants stronger ties with the US to shield Pacific allies from exploitation amid rare earth riches and growing geopolitical threats.

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A worker drives a skip loader at a rare earth metals mine in China’s Jiangxi province. Photo: Reuters
China’s Communist Party

AI-enhanced bodycams among advanced police gear China shows developing nations

At 3-day forum, officials from nations such as Belarus, DRC, Nicaragua and Ethiopia meet China’s minister for public security.

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Pacific nations

Pacific Islands leaders call for ‘ocean of peace’ but face rough seas at summit

The Pacific Islands Forum has been clouded by allegations that host Solomon Islands did not invite Taiwan to please its close backer.

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Pacific nations

Controversy as Solomon Islands freezes out all Pacific Islands Forum partners

Observers say the ‘pragmatic compromise’ aims to create space for Pacific-only dialogue and stop geopolitics from tearing the PIF apart.

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Flags from Pacific nations are seen on the last day of a Pacific Islands Forum in 2018. Photo: AFP
Pacific nations

A drop in the ocean? Pacific nations tap local know-how for marine conservation

Among the measures being taken are a ban on fishing and mining activities in vast marine protected areas.

Pacific nations

Most Pacific island women don’t work. The World Bank wants to change that

Outdated laws and social norms keep 57 per cent of working-age women across the Pacific out of the labour force, the bank says.

Pacific nations

Pacific island nations see a US pullback – will China step up?

The Pacific Islands Forum wants answers from Washington over its unmet financial pledges to the region, including US$200 million in funding.

Former US president Joe Biden (centre) stands with Pacific Islands Forum leaders at the White House following a summit in 2023. Photo: AFP
New Zealand

Letters | Why China conducted naval drills in waters between Australia and New Zealand

Readers discuss Beijing’s maritime strategy, the US’ global influence, and the rise of China’s creative industry.

Sailors onboard the Royal Australian Navy ship HMAS Arunta look at the People’s Liberation Army-Navy Fuchi-class replenishment vessel and Weishanhu Jiangkai-class frigate Hengyang in the Tasman Sea on February 13.Photo: Australian Defence Force/AFP
Diplomacy

Opinion | New Zealand need not fear China’s growing ties with Pacific nations

Rather than falling victim to zero-sum illusions, the West must embrace the multiplex nature of Pacific diplomacy.

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Diplomacy

Why China may face ‘scrutiny’ over police diplomacy in developing world

From freeing scam centre victims to sharing police techniques, China is looking to expand its influence and protect citizens overseas.

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Pacific nations

Miss Pacific Islands hit by fraud row after Samoa beauty queen wins title

Pageant judges stopped from leaving the host nation, Solomon Islands, as police investigate fraudulent activities at the event.

Samoa’s Litara Ieremia Allan was crowned Miss Pacific Islands on February 8. Photo: Instagram/litaraieremiaallan
US-China relations

Don’t push Pacific Islands to choose between China and the West, UK admiral says

A Royal Navy admiral warns that Beijing’s global maritime dominance means China holds vast influence over the countries.

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Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to a deal in 2022 which raised concerns with Australia and the US. Now a UK admiral has warned over China’s influence with Pacific Island nations. Photo: Xinhua
Australia

Is Australia taking myopic approach in wooing Pacific nations to counter China?

Australia has signed deals with the Solomon Islands, Nauru and Papua New Guinea in moves seen as securing its clout as the Pacific leader.

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Australia

Australia strikes US$118 million policing deal with China-friendly Solomons

Australian PM Albanese called the pact a ‘new foundation’ for Canberra’s security ties with Honiara as Beijing’s clout in the Pacific grows.

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