US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman has spoken with Solomon Islands Minister of Foreign Affairs Jeremiah Manele on plans for an US embassy in the Pacific country after news of a draft security pact with China emerged in the past few weeks.
The two officials also talked about “joint efforts to broaden and deepen engagement between our countries in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific region,” US Department of State spokesman Ned Price said in a statement on Tuesday.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in February said that the US planned to open an embassy in Honiara, the island
Sydney, Australia, Apr 13 (EFE).- Australia asked the Solomon Islands, a strategic Pacific island nation, to reconsider signing a security pact it is close to signing with Beijing despite Canberra’s concerns. The pact, according to leaked documents, includes the possibility of sending Chinese security forces to maintain order if requested by the Solomon Islands government. …