Solomon Islands bans US warships pending new approval process

The prime minister’s office of the Pacific island nation said on Tuesday it has suspended entry into its waters for foreign naval vessels pending adoption of a new process for approval of port visits in a bid to police its exclusive economic zones better.

The suspension of entry comes after incidents last week when a US Coast Guard vessel, the Oliver Henry, and a Royal Navy vessel, HMS Spey, were unable to make port calls because the government did not respond to requests to refuel and provision.

“We have requested our partners to give us time to review, and put in place our new processes, before sending further requests for military vessels to enter the country,” prime minister Manesseh Sogavare said in a statement. “These will universally apply to all visiting naval vessels.”

Sogavare said that he wanted to build national capacity to police exclusive economic zones.

The Solomon Islands have had “unfortunate experiences of foreign naval vessels entering the country’s waters during the course of the year without diplomatic clearance granted”, Sogavare said, without naming the countries.

The suspension of naval visits will be lifted when a new process is in place.

In a speech on Tuesday afternoon to welcome the visiting US hospital ship Mercy, Sogavare said the delay over the Oliver Henry was because information had not been sent to his office on time.

He confirmed delays in approving entry for the British warship Spey, which cancelled its planned port call.

Approval procedures 

Earlier, the US embassy in the Australian capital said the Solomon Islands had notified it of a moratorium on foreign naval vessels entering its ports.

“On August 29, the US received formal notification from the government of Solomon Islands regarding a moratorium on all naval visits, pending updates in protocol procedures,” the embassy said in a statement.

The embassy said Mercy had arrived before the moratorium, and it is   monitoring the situation.

The Solomon Islands have had a tense relationship with the US and its allies since striking a security pact with China this year.

Beijing and Honiara have said there will be no Chinese military base, although a leaked draft refers to Chinese naval ships replenishing in the strategically located archipelago.

The Oliver Henry and HMS Spey were on patrol for illegal fishing in the South Pacific for a regional fisheries agency at the time they sought entry to refuel at Honiara, the Solomons’ capital.

The US announced plans in July to combat illegal fishing in the Pacific, as part of increased US engagement with the region to counter China’s rising influence.

On Monday, White House national security council spokesperson John Kirby said it was regrettable that “we’ve seen the Chinese try to bully and coerce nations throughout the Indo-Pacific to do their bidding and to serve what they believe their selfish national security interests are, rather than the broader interests of a free and open Indo-Pacific”.

An Australian defence spokesperson said diplomatic clearances for visiting foreign vessels was a matter for the government of the Solomon Islands.

“Australia continues to work with Solomon Islands to meet its security priorities and the region’s collective maritime security objectives,” said the spokesperson.

A Royal Navy spokesperson said it “looks forward to visiting the Solomon Islands at a later date”.

Reuters