【Text/Observer Network Liu Chenghui】
At the end of last month, the Solomon Islands issued a ban on all foreign warships entering its ports, which even triggered the speculation of some Western media so-called "pro-China and anti-American". Now there is new progress in this ban.
Comprehensive Reuters, Agence France-Presse news, on September 5, local time, Solomon Islands Prime Minister Sogavare said that the ban on foreign warships docking in the country is about to be lifted, during which Australian and New Zealand warships can be exempted, and foreign warships that travel to the country in response to requests for assistance from the country are also not affected by the ban. Sogavare also clarified that the interim ban was issued because the party needed time to process the "spike" of visit requests, and was not directed against the United States.
Reuters and the US "Star-Spangled Banner" quoted agency AFP as reporting
Sogavare made this explanation when questioned by lawmakers on the 5th. Sogavare said the solomon islands' interim ban on foreign warships docking was about to be lifted, and that the review of the relevant visit requests was "going very well" and that "we do not expect the interim ban to last long."
According to Sogavare, the Solomon Islands issued a temporary ban because of a "sudden increase" in requests for visits from foreign warships in recent times. "In many cases, these requests are made in a very short period of time, and it is assumed that the requests made can be granted, he said... Each request needs to be properly reviewed, for example by assessing the benefits and risks it poses to Solomon Islands. ”
He told parliament that the review was "close to completion".
In late August, requests for the U.S. patrol boat HMS Oliver Henry and the British patrol ship HMS Spey to "routinely" call into the port of the Solomon Islands went unanswered. Subsequently, the U.S. Embassy in Australia also said that the Solomon Islands government notified the U.S. side to "suspend all naval vessel visits." Western media, including The Star-Spangled Banner and Reuters, took the opportunity to play it out that this further raised concerns about the Solomon Islands' support for China and severing ties with the United States.
On 23 August, the "Oliver Henry" was rerouted to Papua New Guinea for a visit (Star-Spangled Banner Photo)
Sogavare told opposition lawmakers on the 5th that the us patrol boat "Oliver Henry" did not refuse the request of the US patrol boat "Oliver Henry", but the patrol boat "left our waters and docked at other docks before it was approved."
He added that the ban was not aimed at the United States and that "our target is not the United States of America." ”
Sogavare revealed that during the implementation of the ban, foreign warships visited in response to the rescue request of the party were not affected. In addition, warships deployed with the support of the Solomon Islands International Assistance Force (SIIAF) are not subject to the ban. SIIAF is a treaty of cooperation between Australia, New Zealand and Fiji with the Solomon Islands Police.
"Military ships deployed under the SIIAF are exempt from the ban." He cautioned that while the United States, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom were already involved in illegal fishing patrols, President Solomon's office needed to learn more about patrol vessels, and countries needed to inform them which ships would be dispatched so they could be exempted.
"[Because] we don't know who's going to come." Sogavare added.
Solomon Islands Foreign Minister Manelle said reports on the matter were expected to come out by the end of next week.
Solomon Islands President Sogavare (infographic)
In fact, as early as August 30, Sogavare issued a statement explaining the reason for the temporary ban: foreign ships had entered Solomon Islands waters several times in the past year without issuing diplomatic applications, and the government hoped to build a national capacity sufficient to monitor its own waters, and once the measures were in place, they would lift the moratorium on naval vessel visits.
Even if Sogavare clarified again on the 5th, Agence France-Presse and Reuters still "routinely" pulled On China's hype, claiming that the cooperation "raised concerns about the growing influence of the United States, Australia and New Zealand in China".
On July 7 this year, Sogavare said at the independence day celebration that China is the new partner of the firm, and although the two countries have established diplomatic relations less than three years ago, the Chinese side has shown a sincere willingness to help the development of the institute and become a trustworthy partner of the firm, for which the firm is grateful.
In response, Zhao Lijian, spokesman for our Foreign Ministry, said: Facts have proved that the establishment of diplomatic relations and the development of friendly and cooperative relations between China conform to the trend of the times, conform to the fundamental and long-term interests of the two peoples, and have strong vitality and broad prospects. China will always be a trustworthy and reliable good friend and good partner of Solomon Islands, and is willing to strengthen dialogue, exchanges and cooperation in various fields with the Solomon Islands, so as to promote new progress in China-China relations and better benefit the two peoples.
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