New Zealand is extending its Defence Force deployment to the Solomon Island by 12 months.
The announcement comes after a meeting between Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta and the Solomons' Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Trade Jeremiah Manele on Wednesday morning over Zoom.
According to a readout from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT), Mahuta "reiterated Aotearoa New Zealand’s concerns about the recently signed security agreement between Solomon Islands and China, and welcomed Minister Manele’s assurances that the agreement will not lead to a Chinese military base".
The Solomon Islands last month signed a security cooperation deal with China, receiving condemnation from New Zealand, Australia, the United States and others. The New Zealand Government has consistently said the Solomons should have looked for assistance from within the Pacific and has raised concerns about the potential for the region to be militarised.
"The ministers discussed the critical importance of the Pacific Islands Forum as a space for members to work together on issues of mutual interest and concern, particularly in light of the new challenges of the 21st Century," the MFAT readout says.
Mahuta highlighted to Manele "the need to understand and discuss the regional implications of the agreement amongst Forum Members."
In a statement, Mahuta said she discussed with Manele the "depth of our cooperation as well as the extension of our deployment to Solomon Islands".
"Our partnership promotes peace not only through security cooperation, but also by addressing economic challenges, climate change and a range of other development needs we face as a region," she said.
"New Zealand will continue to work in partnership to weather the profound challenges that face our region, as we have through COVID-19 and last year's unrest in Honiara."
New Zealand sent defence and police personnel to the Solomon Islands after riots in Honiara at the end of 2021. That unrest was partly caused by the Solomons withdrawing recognition of Taiwan in 2019 and establishing relations with Beijing as well as domestic issues.
Mahuta said on Wednesday that New Zealand was "committed to supporting security in Solomon Islands and promoting a peaceful, prosperous and resilient Pacific region".
The Defence Force personnel are in the Solomons as part of the Pacific-led Solomon Islands International Assistance Force (SIAF). Mahuta said it's a "great example of Pacific whānau working collectively to meet our region’s security needs, underpinned by the principle of Tātou Tātou (all of us together) in a regional conversation".
Defence Minister Peeni Henare said it's important for New Zealand to work alongside SAIF.
"As I outlined last year when announcing my Defence Priorities, the Pacific is a priority area for Defence, which is why it is important that NZDF personnel continue to operate, alongside their New Zealand Police colleagues, as part of the SIAF and support the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force to maintain peace and stability through community engagement."
SAIF is made up of personnel from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea who were deployed to Honiara in November 2021 to support the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF).
New Zealand police personnel also remain in the Solomons to help provide capacity building support to RSIPF colleagues.
National's defence spokesperson welcomed the move.
"The extension of the NZDF deployment in the Solomon Islands demonstrates our long-standing partnership between our two nations," MP Tim van de Molen says. "It is important that we are resourced to contribute to these sorts of leadership roles in the Pacific, especially given the evolving security risk in the region".
"But meanwhile our Government is walking back on long term defence investment."
Earlier on Wednesday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said "there is tension in our region" and called the Pacific "contested".
"From our perspective, we will be consistent, regardless of who is in our region and engaging with the members of it, that as long as those values of transparency, openness and peace and stability are at the heart of that activity, that is what we are advocates for. We will constantly seek for that de-escalation."
The United States is attempting to make its presence known in the region, sending a senior official to the Solomons in April to try to get the country to back out of the security deal. It's also launched a new economic framework for the Indo-Pacific.
On Monday, former Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters said New Zealand and like-minded countries needed to pump more resources into the Pacific to counter China's influence.
A Defence Assessment released by New Zealand in December reported that China is the globe's "major driver of geopolitical change".
"In 2019, China publicly announced its intention to increase its military cooperation in the Pacific, as part of its plan for an enhanced global military footprint," the report said.
"China views an increased presence in the Pacific as part of its natural progression towards its global goals, but there are also more specific reasons for Beijing's interest, spanning geopolitical, strategic and economic drivers."
