Australia ramps up policing and security assistance to Solomon Islands

Australia has agreed to ramp up policing and security assistance to Solomon Islands as the federal government prepares to unveil a slew of Pacific initiatives designed bolster its strategic position in the face of fierce competition from China.

Earlier this year, the Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele declared that he wanted Australia's help to double the size of the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) to about 3,000 officers.

A source familiar with discussions told the ABC that Australia had now agreed to support a "substantial" increase in the size of the RSIPF, although it's not yet clear whether it has promised to fund a specific number of new officers.

They said that Australia has also agreed to provide additional policing assistance in Solomon Islands by expanding its policing presence in the country, as well as ramping up the amount of equipment it provides to RSIPF.

A spokesperson for the Foreign Minister Penny Wong declined to comment, citing ongoing discussions between Australia and Solomon Islands.

The Australian Federal Police also declined to comment.

Both Australia and Solomon Islands have been working towards an announcement next week, but the ABC has been told it's now likely to be pushed back — potentially until early next year.

Mr Manele is also facing a no-confidence motion in parliament from prominent MP Gordon Darcy Lilo, with a vote expected in mid-December, which could also complicate the announcement and its timing.

Solomon Islands has been beset with periodic civil unrest over the last three decades, and both Mr Manele and his predecessor Manasseh Sogavare have declared they need to bolster the country's policing capability to reduce tensions.

Australia is already the major security and policing partner for Solomon Islands, offering extensive training and assistance programs to the RSIPF, and leading a regional security mission to restore order in the wake of riots in November 2021 which devastated the capital Honiara.

Before that, Australia also spent almost $3 billion leading the 14-year-long Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI) which saw thousands of troops and police flood into the country, bringing stability after years of civil conflict.

But China has rapidly emerged as a major competitor since signing security and policing agreements with the Pacific island country in 2022, expanding police training across multiple provinces in Solomon Islands, and making high-profile donations of vehicles and equipment.

Senator Wong has described Australia's arm wrestle with China in the Pacific as a "permanent contest" and the expanded police and security assistance is aimed squarely at ensuring there are no security "gaps" which China can offer to fill.

Australia has also made it clear that if Solmon Islands decides to form its own defence force — an idea which Mr Sogavare enthused about — then it wants to be the first country approached to provide assistance.

Last week, a delegation of Solomon Islands police and officials led by Police Minister Jimson Tanangada met with a host of senior Australian officials, ministers and army officers to discuss security assistance — as well as visiting the Army's 3rd Brigade in Townsville.

The discussions with Solomon Islands come as the federal government prepares to make a host of announcements next week — including a new agreement to cement Australia's ties with Nauru, which the government has compared to the landmark Falepili Union with Tuvalu.

The government will also confirm that the Commonwealth Bank will fill the breach left by Bendigo Bank's looming departure from Nauru — although a spokesperson for the bank would not confirm that on Thursday evening.

Separately, the government is working to put the final touches on an agreement with ANZ that will ensure the bank maintains its presence across the Pacific.

It's also widely expected to announce next week a $600 million deal to help establish a new NRL team in Papua New Guinea; a major development in a country where the game is hugely popular.

The Australian government has made it clear there is a security "element" to the agreement aimed at stopping China from establishing a major defence or policing presence in Papua New Guinea.

PNG's Prime Minister James Marape has not explicitly denied that, but has played down any link between the NRL bid and security arrangements with Australia, insisting there were no "conditions" behind the pact.

Mihai Sora from the Lowy Institute said Australian diplomats had been "working feverishly to 'hold the line' in the Pacific since the 2022 Solomon Islands-China security pact, which was widely seen as a failure of Australian foreign policy in the Pacific".

Mr Sora said if Mr Manele signed an agreement to ramp up Australian security assistance in Solomon Islands it would be a "significant change in tack" from Mr Sogavare, who he said was "wilfully dismissive of any Chinese strategic intent".

"Such an elevation of Australian-Solomon Islands security ties right now would be a huge achievement for Australia, notwithstanding that it will come at significant expense to the government," he said.

"With increasing strategic stakes in the region, the cost of maintaining a security environment we can live with will naturally also increase."