This is all to the good:
United States President Joe Biden is reportedly dispatching one of his top officials to Solomon Islands as concerns grow over a soon-to-be-signed security pact with China.
Kurt Campbell — who serves as the US National Security Council Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific — will now also travel to the tiny Pacific nation in April, according to the Financial Times.
According to the Financial Times, Mr Campbell will be accompanied by a top State Department official, Daniel Kritenbrink, for the visit.
And this:
America’s next ambassador to Australia, Caroline Kennedy, said she was committed to taking a stronger stance against China’s coercion in the Indo-Pacific once she takes up her position later this year.
Ms Kennedy, the only remaining child of President John F. Kennedy, said the US and Australia should do more together in the Pacific islands, noting that the reopening of the US Solomon Islands embassy could not have come soon enough.
“The fact that we are reopening our embassy in the Solomon Islands, that can’t come soon enough, and I think that together with Australia, with the infrastructure partnership that we have in the Pacific Islands, we can do more, and we should do more … we need to be more visible,” Ms Kennedy said.
And this:
Ms Kennedy’s comments came as NATO agreed to a request to step up cooperation in the Asia-Pacific area including in areas of maritime security, noting China’s unwillingness to condemn Russia’s aggression in Ukraine was a “serious challenge to us all”.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea would also work together in cybersecurity and other areas. Although Australia and other Asia Pacific countries are not members of the northern security alliance, they are considered friendly “partners”.
And this:
Some of the biggest names in US politics, Senators Ted Cruz and Mitt Romney, have namechecked Australia this week while putting their views forward about President Biden’s pick for the US Ambassador to Australia, Caroline Kennedy.
“As she knows, Australia is our steadfast partner, and among our most important allies historically, and today our partnership remains critical in maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Romney said. Senator Ed Markey, who introduced Kennedy at the hearing, commented that she was perfectly suited to “Australia, the democratic anchor in the Indo-Pacific.”
But it is still not enough. If the Chinese commence construction of a naval base in the Solomon Islands it is a step-change in their influence from soft power to hard power projection into the South Pacific and all Australian/US alliance commitments will be threatened. Any time the US wants Australian support against China in any forum, China will run naval drills off our coast and the cowards of Canberra will wilt.
If it is an actual war, such as in Taiwan, China will strafe the Australian east coast throughout and, again, the cowards of Canberra (though probably not the people) will wilt.
The base cannot be allowed to be built. Whatever it takes.
