Solomon Islands says it will restrict Chinese police | politics news

Solomon Islands’ envoy to Australia said the Chinese police stationed there would be under local command.

The Solomon Islands envoy to Australia said the Chinese police deployed there would be under the authority of the local force and unable to use the harsh methods seen in cities like Hong Kong.

“We’re going to make sure that things that happen in other countries like Hong Kong don’t happen in our country,” Robert Cecillo, High Commissioner for Australia’s Solomon Islands, told ABC Radio on Monday.

Sisilo’s comments follow concerns about China’s growing influence in the Solomon Islands, a Pacific island nation of 700,000 people, after the two countries signed a security agreement last month. Under the terms of the agreement, China could send armed police there to help maintain “social order”.

Once the Chinese police arrive in the Solomon Islands, Sisilo said, they will be under local command.

The agreement is no different from that shared between Australia and the Solomon Islands. During the Solomon Islands riots in late November, Canberra dispatched more than 70 security personnel at the request of the islands government.

“Our prime minister said that we are trying to diversify our sources of assistance, and in this case, we are looking to China to provide that kind of support, just like Australia and other countries that provide the same level of support,” Cicillo said during the conference. the interview.

Both Australia and the United States are concerned that the new agreement could give China a military base in the Pacific.

“The broad nature of the security agreement leaves the door open for the spread of the People’s Republic of China [People’s Republic of China] The US State Department said after news of the security agreement emerged.

In Australia, the deal has sparked soul-searching about its relationship with the island nation and other Pacific nations that China is also seeking to pursue.

Solomon Islands’ prime minister, Manasseh Sogavari, has repeatedly denied that China will be able to build a base, while Sisilo told ABC that his government is “on standby” for development deals that could give China control of major infrastructure projects.

Countries like the Solomon Islands may be keen to avoid the mistakes of Sri Lanka, which had to hand port infrastructure over to China in 2017 when it defaulted on a massive loan.