Solomons signs US-led Pacific agreement after horic meeting

The Solomon Islands has joined 13 other Pacific nations in signing a wide-reaching US-led partnership agreement, after early indications it would refuse.
The ten-point US-Pacific Partnership deal was announced the White House on Thursday evening, following the first-ever meeting between a US president and the leaders of every major Pacific nation. It includes commitments for increased action on climate change, economic development and security cooperation.
Earlier, US President Joe Biden committed more than $810 million to a new Pacific initiative. “A great deal of the hory of our world is going to be written in the Indo-Pacific over the coming years and decades, and the Pacific Islands are a critical voice in shaping that future,” Biden said.
The agreement is similar in tone and reach to a deal which the Chinese government attempted to strike with Pacific nations in May, which was ultimately rejected regional leaders, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported. The head of the Pacific Islands Forum said in July Beijing hadn’t given leaders enough time to consult on the agreement.
The Solomon Islands government had initially indicated to other Pacific nations that it would refuse to sign the US agreement, according to the ABC.

US and the Pacific Islands (including Solomon Islands) sign onto 11-point declaration. Hints of pushback on China (“The Pacific Islands note the United States’ commitment to enhance and deepen its security cooperation in the region”) but nothing explicit https://t.co/TLQPTvKmMR
— Damien Cave (@damiencave) September 30, 2022
Solomons Prime Miner Manasseh Sogavare stood at the left side of Biden during a group photograph after the summit.
In addition to establishing a Solomon Islands embassy, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation and the State Department will provide law enforcement training in the Pacific nation, according to a copy of the agreement released the White House.
In the past year, the US and Australia have been increasingly concerned about growing Chinese government influence in the Pacific and have escalated diplomatic activity in the region. The unexpected announcement in April of a security agreement being struck between China and the Solomon Islands was a major diplomatic win for Beijing.