There is no credible intelligence suggesting China will establish a military base in the Solomon Islands, 1600 kilometres off the Australian mainland, the prime minister says.
But Scott Morrison also revealed he had not yet spoken to his Solomon Islands counterpart Manasseh Sogavare since the security deal with China was signed.
Instead he sent Minister for International Development and the Pacific Zed Seselja to convey Australia’s message, Mr Morrison said.
“(Mr Sogavare) made his decision. He’d made his decision for some time. This wasn’t – there was no opportunity, I think, for him to change his mind on this,” Mr Morrison told the Nine Network on Friday.
But Labor campaign spokesman Jason Clare said the prime minister was not taking the situation seriously, which was proven by his lack of communication with Mr Sogavare.
“It starts with engagement … that’s where this government stuffed this up,” he told reporters in Sydney on Friday.
“Being serious about our national security means making sure we’ve got good relationships with countries in the Pacific and talking to people that are thinking of engaging in the security pact with China and getting on a plane and that’s what failed to happen.”
Mr Morrison also said there was no credible information suggesting a Chinese naval base would be built in the Solomons.
He noted Australia remained Honiara’s security partner of choice with defence personnel and federal police on the ground.
Yet Mr Clare said the prime minister was being contradicted by members of his own government.
“Barnaby Joyce is saying this is the Cuban missile crisis, you have one position from Scott Morrison, a totally different position from the deputy prime minister of Australia,” he said.
The prime minister said the risk of Chinese influence in the Pacific remains real, saying Beijing doesn’t play by the same rules as liberal democracies.
“They play by very different rules and I think people know what I mean when I say that,” Mr Morrison told Sky News.
“It’s really important that we take this incredibly seriously and always have, because the ambitions of the Chinese government, I think, are very clear.”
Defence Minister Peter Dutton was more direct in his assertions without making specific allegations about bribery in the Solomon Islands when speaking on 3AW radio.
“China conducts its business in a very different way than we do,” he said.
“We don’t bribe people, the Chinese certainly do, and they’ve demonstrated that in Africa and elsewhere. People can draw their own conclusions.
“We can provide support, but we can’t win a deal at the end of the day if somebody’s relying on a corrupt payment.”
