US make efforts to counter China's growing influence in Pacific
Oct 09, 2022
Beijing [China], October 9 : To counter China's growing influence in the Pacific, the United States has dialled up every effort and made attempts that would reduce the possibility of other countries in the Pacific region getting into China's orbit, Global Strat View reported.
Recently, US president Joe Biden held a summit with 14 Pacific Island where they issued an 11-point Declaration on US-Pacific Partnership, declaring that they shared a vision for a region where "democracy will be able to flourish."
"We share a vision for a resilient Pacific region of peace, harmony, security, social inclusion, and prosperity, where individuals can reach their potential, the environment can thrive, and democracy will be able to flourish," read the declaration on US-Pacific Partnership.
Washington's plan to deepen diplomatic engagement with the Pacific comes as concerns about China's expanding influence in the region.
During the summit, US President said, "The security of America, quite frankly, and the world depends on your security and the security of the Pacific islands."
According to the Global Strat View citing Derek Grossman, an analyst with the global think tank RAND Corporation, earlier, Washington had not been that active in strengthening the ties with Pacific countries. Still, the latest summit shows that the US is changing its outlook, especially in the wake of China's expanding influence in the region.
"We are still all working from, generally speaking, the same sheet of music, which is we don't want the Chinese establishing a military foothold in the region, and we don't want them corrupting the institutions of the region," he said as quoted by Global Strat View.
Biden announced that Pacific island nations will receive around USD 810 million in funds under the 'Pacific Partnership Strategy.
The US is working at a micro level in order to remain strong in the Pacific region. This involves financial investments, defence cooperation, police training, COVID assistance, and climate support.
One of the highlights of the summit is the participation from the Solomon Islands as it has recently, in May, met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
In the recent summit, Solomon Island opposed China's reference to US Pacific Partnership Declaration. It had previously denied US and UK ships access, resulting from Beijing's influence. All this has added to the US concerns about the Solomon Islands becoming a China ally, reported Global Strat View.
