Solomon Islands Reaffirms Support for Beijing Over Taiwan Amid Deepening Ties With China

The USS Chung-Hoon observes a Chinese navy ship conduct what it called an "unsafe” Chinese maneuver in the Taiwan Strait, on June 3, 2023. The Chinese navy ship cut sharply across the path of the American destroyer, forcing the U.S. ship to slow to avoid a collision. Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Andre T. Richard/U.S. Navy via AP

The Solomon Islands, a small Pacific nation, has issued a statement urging other countries not to take “provocative actions” against Beijing over Taiwan.

This statement could be the first sign of China demanding recipients of its aid to drop their territorial stance on Taiwan and demonstrate loyalty.

Since the Solomon Islands switched its allegiance from Taiwan to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 2020, it has benefited from substantial support.

Just last year, the nation received a budget rescue package from China worth more than $30 million—a significant sum for a country of around 750,000 people and a GDP of about $1.6 billion.

Beyond financial aid, Beijing is also a vital source of trade revenue.

Bilateral trade was worth US$540 million in 2023, with the Solomons enjoying a $100 million surplus in its favour.

When Honiara pledged its allegiance to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), tariffs on 98 percent of its exports to China were dropped to zero percent.

The Solomon Islands is not the only recipient of CCP largesse in the region. According to Chinese statistics, the total trade volume between China and Pacific island states grew from US$153 million to US$5.3 billion between 1992 and 2021.

However, most are careful not to alienate traditional allies such as Australia, New Zealand, and the United States, staying out of geopolitics in the region as much as possible.

The Pacific Islands Forum describes this as “friends to all and enemies to none.”

“We have no intention of making enemies, and our Pacific ways must pacify all forces and interests in our region,” Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape.

The statement from the Solomon Islands Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade released on social media on Feb. 19 reiterates the nation’s “unwavering” commitment to the “One China Principle,” recognising Taiwan as part of China’s sovereign territory.

The Ministry calls on “all nations ... to refrain from interference in the internal affairs of sovereign states” since “maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is critical for global trade and the maintenance of international security.”

“Any provocative actions that could heighten tensions is not encouraged,” it says.

The statement does not refer to any particular incident or provocateur, but earlier this week the CCP reacted angrily to a change in the wording on the U.S. State Department’s website, which eliminated a section that said America did not support Taiwan’s independence.

Beijing said the U.S. needed to “correct its mistakes” after the U.S. State Department removed previous wording on its website about not supporting Taiwan independence, which it said was part of a routine update.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said the revision “sends a seriously wrong message to Taiwan independence separatist forces.

“This is yet another example of the United States’ stubborn adherence to the erroneous policy of ‘using Taiwan to suppress China’,” he said.

The statement comes amid heightened geopolitical tensions as the Cook Islands has yet to reveal the full content and implications of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership it signed last week with Beijing and the sighting of three Chinese warships off the coast of Sydney.