Solomon Islands' New PM Seeks to Reset Ties: Reviews China Security Pact, Eyes Comprehensive Treaty with Australia
CANBERRA, June 3 (Reuters) — The Solomon Islands will pursue a comprehensive strategic treaty with Australia and conduct a review of its security pact with China, the country's newly installed prime minister said on Wednesday — a move that underscores the shifting dynamics of great-power competition in the Pacific.
Matthew Wale, a veteran opposition figure who previously criticized Beijing's influence, made the announcement during his first official trip to Canberra, less than three weeks after taking office as leader of the archipelago nation some 1,600 km (1,000 miles) northeast of Australia.
The Solomon Islands has been widely regarded as the Pacific Island nation with the closest ties to China. Its 2022 security deal with Beijing alarmed Australia, the United States, and other regional partners, prompting a surge in diplomatic efforts by Canberra to reassert its traditional role as the region's security guarantor.
“The Solomon Islands is Australia’s friend, has always been and always will be,” Wale said at a joint press conference alongside Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. “We acknowledge that there have been problems in the last few years. We have sought a reset.”
Wale’s visit comes after he described the 2022 China deal as contrary to Solomon Islands’ interests at the time it was signed. However, he later visited Beijing and moderated his tone. On Wednesday, he revealed that the security agreement contained a non-disclosure clause and that he had only obtained a full copy of it in recent days after pressing for access.
“I’ve had to remove certain people from key positions,” Wale said. “We are going to be reviewing it, as we are reviewing other security agreements we have with many other countries.”
China’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Comprehensive Treaty on the Table
Albanese said Australia would provide a support package to help the Solomon Islands cope with high energy prices and the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Maila, which struck earlier this year. He also pledged to move forward on a policing partnership, an area where Australia has long been the dominant provider of security assistance.
“Today we’ve committed to elevate our bilateral relationship at the request of the Solomon Islands,” Albanese said. “This will be agreed in a new comprehensive treaty.”
Neither leader detailed the treaty’s scope. However, Wale’s delegation included his ministers for foreign affairs, finance, and policing, suggesting the talks covered broad economic and security matters. In 2024, Australia allocated more than $100 million to bolster the Solomon Islands police force — a move Albanese highlighted as evidence that Canberra remains the nation’s “security partner of choice.”
Connor Graham, a Pacific researcher at the Australian think tank the Lowy Institute, described Wale’s actions as a “very clear signal.”
“He’s only been in power for a couple of weeks and we’re already here,” Graham said. He added that Australia would strengthen its position more effectively by addressing Solomon Islands’ priorities — health, education, climate resilience, and economic diversification — rather than focusing solely on security and China.
The review of the China security pact and the pivot toward a deeper treaty with Australia reflect a broader regional narrative: Pacific island nations are increasingly seeking to balance great-power relationships while extracting concrete benefits from major partners. For the Solomon Islands, the outcome of this recalibration could shape not only its own sovereignty and stability but also the geopolitical posture of the wider Pacific Islands region.
(Reporting by Peter Hobson in Canberra; additional reporting by Ryan Woo in Beijing; editing by Kevin Buckland and Lincoln Feast.)