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Solomon Islands
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Solomon Islands

Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
The Solomon Islands is a nation composed of hundreds of islands in the South Pacific. In 2022, it signed a security pact with China, causing uproar among some of its neighbours, including Australia, and concern for countries such as the US that have strategic interests in the area.
Capital
Honiara
Head of State
King Charles III
Head of Government
Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele
Not only has gung-ho – derived from the Chinese gong he – entered the English dictionary, but it also features in the names of several awards associated with the US Marine Corps. Photo: The Boston Globe via Getty Images
2026 Xi-Trump summits

How China’s wartime cooperatives gave us ‘gung-ho’

Trump’s mention of a ‘Chinese phrase’ may have puzzled some, but the US Marine Corps adopted gung-ho from the name of wartime cooperatives.

US-China relations

US port pledge ups China rivalry in Pacific but island nations stick to own course

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Australia

Australia nears treaty with Solomon Islands in bid to limit China’s influence

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China-EU relations

EU gives Arctic shipping route cold shoulder as China and Russia push ahead

Its opposition to the commercialisation of Arctic transit comes amid rising anxiety over Beijing and Moscow’s closer polar collaboration.

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Europe is wary of fragile polar ecosystems and navigational risks. Photo: Getty Images
Pacific nations

Cook Islands PM re-elected despite row with New Zealand over China ties

The result shows that local voters are not as concerned about geopolitical issues as claimed in earlier reports, analysts say.

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Pacific nations

Solomon port plans mark US reset of ‘anaemic’ Pacific ties

The move aims to ensure Honiara partners with Western allies in sectors with security implications, analysts say.

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Pacific nations

China’s missile test exposes lack of unity among Pacific island nations

While some Pacific Islands Forum members have criticised the test near Tuvalu, Papua New Guinea appears to have backtracked, analysts say.

A ballistic missile test launched from a Chinese nuclear-powered submarine in the South Pacific on July 6. Photo: Xinhua/AP
US-China relations

Top Chinese South Pacific security partner to let US patrol its waters

Agreement will allow US vessels to patrol with local police as Honiara expands maritime ties with Washington despite close Beijing links.

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Science

China’s AI weather warning system Mazu expanding across Global South

The system has been designed to provide ‘tailored’ services that help developing countries better prepare for extreme weather events.

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China’s military

Opinion | China’s missile test from a submarine is no guarantee of regional stability

Beijing’s ICBM test from a nuclear-powered submarine is a win from a defence perspective but comes with greater responsibilities.

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Illustration: Mario Cameira
SCMP Highlights

Chinese scientist sodium battery leap; petition to boot Argentina: 7 highlights

From Hong Kong’s exceptional IB results to Louis Vuitton suing China’s trademark regulator, here are highlights from SCMP’s recent reporting.

A flashpoint in the controversial Argentina v Egypt match, when referee Francois Letexier shows a red card to an Egyptian staff member. Photo: dpa
Pacific nations

China sends a message to Pacific islands amid unease over missile test

Solomons prime minister has pledged to review China pact while advancing talks on a comprehensive treaty with Australia.

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Australia

Australia, Fiji sign mutual defence pact to boost Pacific security

Australia has greatly upped its diplomatic efforts in the region following China’s secretive security deal with the Solomon Islands in 2022.

Pacific nations

Vanuatu bans ‘foreign’ military bases in new security pact with Australia

The treaty is the latest in a string of Pacific deals Australia has signed seeking to curb China’s expanding security influence.

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Vanuatu’s Prime Minister Jotham Napat (left) and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese present the signed Nakamal agreement at Parliament House in Canberra on Monday. Photo: EPA
China education

‘Natural’ choice: why Unesco’s new STEM education centre is based in Shanghai

China is working with the UN agency to help the world’s least developed countries advance technical education and grow their talent pools.

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President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the Unesco headquarters in Paris on March 27, 2014. Photo: AFP
Pacific nations

Australia pledges US$1.7 million in aid after Cyclone Maila kills 11 in Pacific

Entire villages were destroyed in the storm, was briefly classified as a Category 5 cyclone.

Japan

Solomon Islands residents live in fear of WWII bomb explosions

With more people on the islands killed or injured due to the munitions, a UN team calls for international efforts to remove the danger.

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Pacific nations

Solomon Islands’ defence force dream: an Australia-China flashpoint?

A military force would help quell unrest, but some say relying on Beijing for arms may make the Pacific nation an ‘enemy state’ of the West.

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Royal Solomon Islands Police Force officers train with a Chinese police liaison team in 2022. Photo: RSIPF/AFP
China-Australia relations

Call for ‘Pacific Eyes’ intelligence body to offset China’s growing presence

Think tank proposes dedicated alliance – initially with Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Fiji – to avoid being ‘blindsided’.

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New Zealand

New Zealand calls on US to counter China’s Pacific mineral push

New Zealand wants stronger ties with the US to shield Pacific allies from exploitation amid rare earth riches and growing geopolitical threats.

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China’s Communist Party

AI-enhanced bodycams among advanced police gear China shows developing nations

At 3-day forum, officials from nations such as Belarus, DRC, Nicaragua and Ethiopia meet China’s minister for public security.

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Chinese organisers invited more than 800 guests and law enforcement officials from 176 countries and regions and 14 international organisations to a forum where China displayed advanced policing and security equipment. Photo: CCTV
Pacific nations

Pacific Islands leaders call for ‘ocean of peace’ but face rough seas at summit

The Pacific Islands Forum has been clouded by allegations that host Solomon Islands did not invite Taiwan to please its close backer.

Pacific Islands Forum Secretary-General Baron Waqa receives a gift from a Solomon Islander during the opening ceremony on Monday. Photo: Xinhua
Pacific nations

Controversy as Solomon Islands freezes out all Pacific Islands Forum partners

Observers say the ‘pragmatic compromise’ aims to create space for Pacific-only dialogue and stop geopolitics from tearing the PIF apart.

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Pacific nations

A drop in the ocean? Pacific nations tap local know-how for marine conservation

Among the measures being taken are a ban on fishing and mining activities in vast marine protected areas.

Pacific nations

Most Pacific island women don’t work. The World Bank wants to change that

Outdated laws and social norms keep 57 per cent of working-age women across the Pacific out of the labour force, the bank says.

A stallholder displays her wares to tourists at a market on Rarotonga in the Pacific nation of the Cook Islands earlier this month. Photo: AFP
Pacific nations

Pacific island nations see a US pullback – will China step up?

The Pacific Islands Forum wants answers from Washington over its unmet financial pledges to the region, including US$200 million in funding.

Former US president Joe Biden (centre) stands with Pacific Islands Forum leaders at the White House following a summit in 2023. Photo: AFP
New Zealand

Letters | Why China conducted naval drills in waters between Australia and New Zealand

Readers discuss Beijing’s maritime strategy, the US’ global influence, and the rise of China’s creative industry.

Diplomacy

Opinion | New Zealand need not fear China’s growing ties with Pacific nations

Rather than falling victim to zero-sum illusions, the West must embrace the multiplex nature of Pacific diplomacy.

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