Tag: Wang Yi

China, New Zealand Foreign Ministers Discuss Pacific Engagement and Reaffirm Relationship

A virtual meeting between the foreign ministers of China and New Zealand was held on Monday, where they reaffirmed the relationship between the two countries and discussed Beijing’s growing involvement in the Pacific. It came after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi finished a diplomatic tour around the Pacific where he attempted to mobilise 10 pacific…


Experts Deride Claims Aussie Foreign Minister Singlehandedly Torpedoed Pacific China Pact

Pacific experts have panned claims that new Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong singlehandedly took down Beijing’s efforts to sign 10 island nations onto a sweeping economic and security pact. James Cox, director of Pacific advocacy group Peacifica, said any suggestion that a quick visit from a minister from the newly elected Labor government could shift…


China Is Australia’s ‘Biggest Security Anxiety’: Australian Deputy Prime Minister

Richard Marles, Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister has said China is Australia’s “biggest security anxiety” as Beijing expands its influence among the Pacific island nations. Marles warned that China would “maintain an interest” in the Pacific, even though Beijing was forced to shelve a sweeping security and economic deal with 10 nations in the…


Don’t Go ‘Pound for Pound’ Against Beijing in the Pacific, Win the Grassroots Battle: Former Special Ops

Australia, the United States, and democratic allies should avoid engaging in a “bidding war” with Beijing to win the battle for influence over Pacific leaders, instead, the focus should be on grassroots efforts to build stronger connections with generations of communities, according to a former special forces officer. Heston Russell, who also spent years working…


Beijing Vows ‘Greater Effort’ to Lock In Sweeping Regional Deal

Beijing will continue to push Pacific nations to sign onto a sweeping regional security, and economy deal after a May 30 conference saw the Chinese regime’s original proposal fall flat. According to the Chinese state-owned Xinhua, Wang Yi, the regime’s foreign minister, said Beijing would continue to “make greater efforts to advance the comprehensive strategic…


South Pacific Nations Unite to Resist China’s Attempt to Control the Region

As the United States shifts its strategic focus to the Indo-Pacific, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) attempts to gain control over island nations in the region. China’s foreign minister introduced a broad-reaching security and trade pact during a recent visit to the South Pacific. But the United States and some Pacific nations raised concerns. Chinese…


Beijing Forced to Shelve Sweeping Pacific Security Deal

A lack of consensus from Pacific nations has forced Beijing to shelve a sweeping security and economic deal with the region, following a meeting between foreign ministers on May 30. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is midway through an eight-nation tour of the region where Beijing has been attempting to tighten alliances with the island…


Countering Beijing: New Australian Government Pledges Pacific Climate Investment

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong has spruiked a “new era” of engagement with the Pacific in a speech to the Pacific Islands Forum in Fiji. Wong, fresh from a trip to Tokyo for the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, is visiting the South Pacific amid Beijing’s overt push for influence in the region. The foreign minister said…


Former ASIO Head Urges Albanese Administration to Develop Relations With Indonesia

Duncan Lewis, the former director-general of the Australian Security Intelligence Service (ASIO), has called on the new Albanese government to develop relations with Indonesia facing the challenges of international affairs in its Pacific neighbour. Anthony Albanese, the new Australian prime minister, has promised that his government will take the geostrategic environment of the Pacific seriously….


Chinese Foreign Minister Receives Red Carpet Welcome in Honiara, Solomon Islands

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi landed in the Solomon Islands capital Honiara on May 26 where he will meet with the Pacific nation’s leadership for a two-day visit. Beijing is expected to sign-off on a contentious security deal with Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare that will open the door for Chinese People’s Liberation Army…