the profile of the new Prime Minister confirms the solidity of the new relations with China

Former pro-Chinese foreign minister Jeremiah Manele was elected prime minister of the Solomon Islands on Thursday. This vote confirms Beijing’s influence in this highly strategic region despite the efforts led by the United States and its allies.

In the Solomon Islands, the elected officials of this South Pacific archipelago have just elected Thursday, May 2, as Prime Minister, Jeremiah Manele, a former head of diplomacy, architect of rapprochement with China. The Solomon Islands have been sensitive to the gentle eyes of Beijing for five years now. Five years during which the elected officials of the archipelago have raised the stakes by accepting both the essential, historic aid provided by Australia, and the massive investments from China. A standoff won by the Chinese government, which is confirmed with the election of Jeremiah Manele.

This is a confirmation, because it has already been two years since the agreement was sealed between the Solomon Islands and China with the signing of a security pact, the content of which is, even today, kept secret. This pact allowed Chinese companies to develop on the archipelago and Beijing to achieve a masterstroke in its battle for control of the Pacific. But above all, this pact gave China the opportunity to position itself less than 2,000 kilometers from Sydney.

A rapprochement that worries Australia

The subject is considered very serious by the Australian authorities. Australia, signatory of the Aukus military cooperation agreement with the United States and Great Britain, is also the big brother of the Solomon Islands within the Commonwealth Community. This was supposed to ensure the loyalty of the archipelago by distributing millions of dollars in development aid each year. But the Chinese arguments obviously carried more weight, to the point of leading to this security pact. A rapprochement which immediately sowed a certain panic in Australia.

At the time, Australian Sam Roggeveen, a former defense and intelligence analyst, explained why this agreement was capable of calling into question Australian defense strategy. “The strength of Australia’s defense strategy is based on long distance. So any move to bring a potential threat closer to Australian territory should cause us concern. We should expect China to deploy its military presence throughout Asia “, he explained. If the Chinese government affirms that its intention is absolutely not to install military equipment on the archipelago, experts assure that for two years, on at least three islands of the archipelago, the ground has been prepared to be able to position major military capabilities.