Australia will continue in its financial support for Solomon Islands amid growing concern over the Pacific nation signing a policing deal with China.
The leaked draft deal between the two nations would allow for Chinese ships to be based in the Pacific, as well as have a navy base less than 2,000 kilometres off Australia's coast.
In a joint statement released on Friday afternoon, Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne and International Development Minister Zed Seselja said Australia respected the right of every Pacific country to make sovereign decisions.
But the government expressed concern if such decisions would destabilise Australia's security in the Pacific region.
"We would be particularly concerned by any actions that undermine the stability and security of our region, including the establishment of a permanent presence such as a military base," the statement read.
Australia will be allocating $22 million in budget support to the Islands to fund salaries for essential workers, assist with recovery efforts of COVID-19 and recent civil unrest.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he wasn't blindsided by the deal, noting Australia's leadership in the Pacific region through development assistance and investments in telecommunications and infrastructure.
"Events that you've seen most recently, I think, only highlight the constant pressure ... that is coming into the region from interests that are not aligned with Australia’s and not aligned with those of the Pacific more broadly," he told reporters in Sydney on Friday.
"There are others who may seek to pretend to influence and to seek to get some sort of foothold in the region.
"We're very conscious of that, and that's why we have been doing that work. We are not completely immune from the risks of that."
He said Australia was active in the region to ensure "a free and open Pacific".
"We share with our Pacific family ... culture, the principles of democracy and freedom, and these are things that are very important to the Pacific island peoples."
Mr Morrison said he had been in regular contact with Solomon Islands, and indicated he would see how the China-Solomons deal progressed.
His comments come as the wide-ranging draft security pact between the Solomon Islands and China was leaked online.
The proposals — which have not yet been adopted — would allow Chinese security and naval deployments to the crisis-hit Pacific island nation.
The United States and Australia have long been concerned about the potential for China to build a naval base in the South Pacific, allowing its navy to project power far beyond its borders.
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare. Source: AAP
"We would be concerned clearly about any military base being established and we would express that to the Solomon Islands government," he told Today on Friday morning.
"I'm meeting with my New Zealand counterpart [Peeni Henare] this afternoon.
"It's a standing agenda item for all of us to be realistic about China's footprint, their exertion, their pressure and the way in which they conduct their business," he said.
Defence Minister Peter Dutton. Source: AAP / Mick Tsikas
"We have a fantastic relationship with the Solomon Islands and we’re there at the request of the government of the Solomon Islands at the moment."
New Zealand's Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta has also voiced her alarm at the proposed deal, flagging the harmful relations that could eventuate between the Pacific countries if the document is genuine.
"This would not benefit New Zealand or our Pacific neighbours," she said on Friday.
“New Zealand’s High Commissioner in Honiara is raising our concerns with the Solomon Islands Government, and we will also be raising our concerns directly with China.”
China is so far remaining tight-lipped about the draft deal.
A foreign ministry spokesman told Reuters reporters on Friday China backs the Solomon Islands in upholding social order, when asked if the two nations were in talks on a security partnership.
At a regular media briefing in Beijing, ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin did not confirm or deny the proposed cooperation when asked about it.
'Broad in scope'
Anna Powles, a security expert at the Massey University of New Zealand, said the draft agreement was "broad in scope" and contained "several ambiguous and potentially geopolitically ambitious provisions".
It would allow armed Chinese police and the military to deploy at the Solomon Islands' request, to maintain "social order".
The "forces of China" would also be allowed to protect "the safety of Chinese personnel" and "major projects in the Solomon Islands".
Without the written consent of the other party, neither would be allowed to disclose the missions publicly.
Crucially, Ms Powles said, the draft agreement also showed "China is seeking logistical supply capabilities and material assets located in the Solomon Islands to support ship visits".
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare (left) walks with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on Wednesday, 9 October, 2019. Source: AAP, AP / Mark Schiefelbein
The nation of 800,000 has been wrecked by political and social unrest, and many of its people live in poverty.
In November, protesters tried to storm the parliament and then went on a deadly three-day rampage, torching much of Honiara's Chinatown.
More than 200 peacekeepers from Australia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and New Zealand were deployed to restore calm, and veteran Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare avoided being deposed.
The latest and fuelled by unemployment and inter-island rivalries.
But anti-China sentiment also played a role.
Leaders on the most populous island of Malaita fiercely oppose Mr Sogavare's decision to recognise Beijing and break ties with Taiwan in 2019.
"The agreement will likely be viewed in Malaita with suspicion and deep concern in the current climate of unease," Ms Powles said.
Following the 2021 riots the United States announced it was reopening its embassy in Honiara, which had been closed in 1993.
China has since deployed police to train local forces and donated riot equipment. Late on Thursday the Solomon Islands announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding on police cooperation with Beijing.
Earlier this week Australia's high commissioner in the country Lachie Strahan met Mr Sogavare and agreed to extend the "Solomons International Assistance Force" — deployed for last year's riots — until December 2023.
Australia previously led a peacekeeping mission in the Solomons from 2003 to 2017.
They also agreed Australia would build a handful of infrastructure projects and provide much-needed budget assistance.
