China in the Pacific Islands

The French overseas territory seeks to maintain strong relations with China, while Paris is more wary.

After a whirlwind of visits and agreements, where does the Pacific region stand?

The Pacific Islands are not interested in being Australia’s – or China’s – “little brothers.”

The foreign ministers of Australia and China were both making their final stops Friday on what has become an island-hopping diplomatic duel in the South Pacific.

Australia’s new government and the United States are both moving urgently to boost ties with Pacific Island countries as the scope of China’s ambition becomes clear.

Kiribati made a rare exception to its pandemic border closure for Wang Yi and a Chinese delegation to visit.

Micronesia’s president called the draft sent out by Beijing “the single most game-changing proposed agreement in the Pacific in any of our lifetimes.”

Beijing’s ambassador to Australia wrote a newspaper op-ed to try and assuage concerns over China’s new security pact with Solomon Islands – although he didn’t specifically mention the deal.

Cooperation, competition, and contestation are at the heart of Australia’s engagement in the Indo-Pacific.

Old anxieties about Australia’s vulnerabilities remain relatively unchanged, but the new geopolitical order is fundamentally different. 

The deal was likely China's response to AUKUS. Now Australia and the U.S. will consider how to respond, possibly intensifying the security competition in the Pacific.