• Jeremiah Manele, the foreign minister of the Solomon Islands, was elected as the new prime minister by the country’s parliament on May 2, 2024 (NBC News, Los Angeles Times, Yahoo News, NHK, Al Jazeera, NPR, The Times of India, BBC Persian, The Washington Post, The Guardian, Associated Press, China Daily, France 24).
  • Manele, who is considered pro-China, secured 34 votes out of 47 in a secret parliamentary ballot, defeating his opponent John Keniapisia (NBC News, Los Angeles Times, Yahoo News, Al Jazeera, NPR, The Times of India, The Washington Post, The Guardian, Associated Press, China Daily).
  • The election of Manele is expected to maintain the Solomon Islands’ close ties with China, which were established under the previous government led by Manasseh Sogavare (NBC News, Yahoo News, NPR, The Washington Post, Yahoo News, Associated Press, China Daily).
  • In 2022, the Solomon Islands signed a security pact with China, raising concerns among Western allies, particularly the United States and Australia, about Beijing’s growing influence in the Pacific region (NBC News, Los Angeles Times, NPR, The Washington Post, The Guardian, Associated Press).
  • The security agreement allows China to send police and military personnel to the Solomon Islands to assist in maintaining social order and protecting Chinese-funded projects (Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post).
  • Manele has defended the security pact, stating that it is necessary to address the country’s internal security challenges and that it does not undermine the Solomon Islands’ sovereignty (The Washington Post, The Guardian).
  • The United States and its allies have been trying to counter China’s influence in the Pacific, with the U.S. reopening its embassy in the Solomon Islands in 2023 and increasing aid to the region (NBC News, NPR, The Washington Post).
  • Some analysts argue that the concept of “Asian swing states,” including the Solomon Islands, is a myth and that these countries are not as strategically important as often portrayed (Foreign Affairs).

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