To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the implications of the draft security agreement between China and the Solomon Islands for (a) the stability and security of the Asia Pacific region and (b) British allies and interests in the region.
Answered on
31 March 2022
The UK and Solomon Islands have a strong bilateral relationship with shared priorities including security, stability, economic development and tackling climate change. By way of example, at the request of the Solomon Islands' Ministry of Health and Medical Services, the UK sent an Emergency Medical Team (which arrived in Honiara on 11 March) to support the Government of Solomon Islands in dealing with the country's first Covid-19 outbreak. The UK remains committed to increased engagement and strategic focus on the Indo-Pacific, as determined in the 2021 Integrated Review. Bilateral relations between China and Solomon Islands are a matter for those two countries.