This is good news because clearly the Chinese are trying to create strategic bases in the South Pacific where they could target Australia and New Zealand from. If a contingency was to happen in the South China Sea the fact that these two U.S. allies could be quickly targeted could influence future defense decisions:
Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Friday lauded a legal decision in the Solomon Islands that prevents a Chinese company from leasing an entire island in the South Pacific nation.
“I want to applaud the decision of the Solomon Islands attorney general to invalidate the Chinese effort to lease the island of Tulagi for 75 years,” Esper said in a statement. “This is an important decision to reinforce sovereignty, transparency, and the rule of law.”
Details of the long-term lease between the Solomon Islands’ Central Province and the China Sam Enterprise Group were only recently made public. News of the deal followed soon after Solomon Island officials announced in September that the nation was switching its diplomatic ties from Taiwan to China.
Stars & Stripes
You can read more at the link, but but do not think that the Chinese are not going to stop trying to create strategic bases in the South Pacific to pressure New Zealand and Australia with.
