SUVA, July 2 : Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has refused China’s bid to create a military base in the Pacific Islands, stating that Beijing didn’t need such a base for its power projection after its ICBM test last year, reports South China Morning Post.
The Oceanic country is a pivotal point between the US, Asia, and Oceania, and its strategic position offers massive military advantages for anyone holding the area. The move comes amid the growing hostility between Washington and Beijing, the latter of which is moving at a rapid pace to set up military checkpoints across the globe to curtail the US.
The islands were trying to cope with a big, powerful China seeking to spread its influence, Rabuka told the National Press Club in the Australian capital, adding that Beijing understood he would lobby other Pacific leaders against such a base.
“Pacific leaders in all their recent discussions have tried to go for policies that are friendly to all and enemies to none and it is a fairly tough course to steer, but it is possible,” he said.
The Pacific would feel the impact of any conflict over the Taiwan Strait between major powers, a possibility already being planned for by China and other nations, Rabuka said.
Commenting on China’s security ambitions and its desire to have a base in Suva, Rabuka said that Beijing already has a security pact with the Solomon Islands.
“If they want to come, who would welcome them ” Rabuka said. “Not Fiji.”
China’s embassy in Fiji did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Beijing has previously ruled out establishing a military base in Solomon Islands.
Fiji’s cooperation with China to develop infrastructure should not affect how it interacts with Australia, New Zealand and the US, he added.
To manage strategic competition in the region, Rabuka said he was trying to build support for an “Ocean of Peace” treaty to ensure outsiders respect its unity and the “rejection of coercion as a means to achieve security, economic or political advantage”.
Leaders of the 18 members of the Pacific Islands Forum will consider the pact at a meeting in September.
(UNI)
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