Manasseh Sogavare said the Solomon Islands and other countries in the region “should have consulted to ensure that this Aukus treaty is transparent, as it would affect the Pacific family by allowing nuclear submarines in Pacific waters”. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison responded on Friday afternoon, saying that Sugavare had changed his mind on the basis of “other influences” and that there was “a remarkable resemblance between these statements and those of the Chinese government”. China announced last week that it had signed a security agreement with the Solomon Islands, although the final terms of that agreement have not yet been made public. Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States announced in mid-September that they would deepen tripartite security cooperation through Aukus and launched a project to find the best way for Australia to acquire at least eight nuclear submarines. Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne used a speech Thursday to criticize the secrecy surrounding the Solomon security agreement, insisting that “any document signed and out of the public eye” would change Australia’s commitment to meet the needs of the Pacific island countries. In an occasional defense speech to parliament in Honiara on Friday, Sogavare said the “Western media” had accused the Solomon Islands and China of lacking transparency about the deal. But Sogavare said he first “learned about the Aukus treaty in the media”. “One would expect that as a member of the Pacific family, the Solomon Islands and the members of the Pacific should have consulted to ensure that this Aukus treaty is transparent, as it would affect the Pacific family by allowing nuclear submarines into the waters. of the Pacific, “Sogavare said. “Oh, but I realize… that Australia is a sovereign country and that it can conclude any treaty it wants, transparently or not – that’s exactly what they did to me. [the] Aukus Treaty. “ Sogavare added: “When Australia signed up for Aukus, we did not become theatrical and hysterical about the impact this would have on us. We respected Australia’s decision. “And I am pleased to say that Australia, the United States of Australia and Japan have respected our sovereignty to conclude this security agreement with China on the basis of mutual trust and respect.” Morrison said he spoke to Sogavare the day after Aukus’ announcement in September 2021 as part of a series of phone calls with several leaders informing them of what he had negotiated in a “very safe” environment. Morrison said Australia was moving quickly to reassure the Pacific about Australia’s continued commitment to non-proliferation. “I had this conversation with the prime minister [Sogavare] the day after the announcement and no issues were raised at that time in that debate, “Morrison told reporters during an election campaign in Tasmania. “But obviously, as time goes on and new relationships are formed, there have obviously been some clearly different influences on the perspective adopted by the Solomon Islands prime minister. “Now I understand.” Asked if Morrison was saying that Sogavare was parroting China’s rhetoric, the Australian prime minister replied: “There is a striking resemblance between these statements and those of the Chinese government.” China has been highly critical of the Aukus deal as part of US efforts to contain it, and has emphasized the dangers of non-proliferation. A Chinese Foreign Ministry official, Wang Wenbin, told reporters Wednesday that the United States and Australia were guilty of “pure double standards.” “The United States has shown no transparency and transparency when it conducted nuclear tests and dumped nuclear waste in the South Pacific and when Aukus opened the Pandora’s nuclear weapons depot in the Asia-Pacific region,” Wang said. Sugavare reiterated on Friday that the Solomon Islands would not allow a Chinese military base in the country. He said he agreed with other leaders, including Morrison, that such a military base would not be in the interests of the Solomon Islands or the region. However, Sogavare said he found it “very, very offensive” that Canberra categorically refused to allow Australian police and defense personnel to protect Chinese infrastructure and the Chinese embassy during last year’s riots in Honiara. . He said the Solomon Islands had no choice but to conclude a security agreement with our other bilateral partners to fill the gaps in our security agreement with Australia. “The Solomon Islands are grateful for the security agreement it has with Australia,” Sogavare said. “However, the riots of 2006 and more recently the riots of November showed that even with the support of Australia we could not prevent half of Honiara from being leveled to the ground.” Sogavare said that a stable Solomon Islands would lead to a stable Pacific and his country “did not agree with the view that only a partner or partners of the same ideology can do that”. On Thursday, a key adviser to the prime minister of Solomon Islands’s most populous province expressed concern that the deal could allow Sogavare to use Chinese armed police and military personnel to quell democratic dissent and maintain power for years. .
