The US announced retaliation if China built a base in the Solomons

The US statement was made during a 90-minute meeting between senior US officials and Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare and 20 members of the cabinet and senior Solomons staff on April 22.

However, Daniel Kritenbrink, US assistant secretary of state for East Asia and the Pacific, did not disclose how Washington would react if Beijing built a military base in the Solomons.

According to Mr. Daniel Kritenbrink, the purpose of the US “explain to our friends… but also to talk in a very frank way about their concerns about the security deal they signed with China.”

The US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and the Pacific also said that Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare reiterated “concrete guarantees that there will be no military bases… no permanent presence, no upgrading of military capabilities”.

Daniel Kritenbrink called the security agreement between the Solomon Islands and China “lack of transparency” and questioned the motives of the two sides.

“Clearly only a very small number of people know about the content of this agreement, and Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare has said he will only share details with China’s permission – this is a matter of concern. hesitate”, The allegation of lack of transparency is characteristic of China’s activities in the region, said Daniel Kritenbrink.

The US assistant secretary of state for East Asia and the Pacific also said that China is looking to establish a stronger presence abroad and build infrastructure to be able to project military power. his possessions in places far beyond his territory.

On April 19, China and the Solomon Islands announced that they had signed a security treaty but did not disclose details. However, according to a draft leaked in March, Chinese ships will be allowed to conduct logistics, stopover and transit activities in the Solomons. Beijing could also deploy “appropriate forces” to protect its employees and projects in the Solomons.

The security agreement between the Solomon Islands and China is considered the reason that forced the US to send Mr. Kritenbrink and Mr. Kurt Campbell – the US National Security Council (NSC) Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific to the region. .

The visit to the Solomon Islands is the last leg of the US delegation’s trans-Pacific trip. Before that, they had stopped in Hawaii, Fiji and Papua New Guinea.