SUVA, Fiji: China’s push for deeper security and trade ties with Pacific island countries stalled, prompting its top diplomat to assure the region that Beijing was not seeking to drag them in their strategic competition with the United States and its allies.
In a test of China’s ambitions, Pacific Island nations at a summit on Monday postponed action on a regional proposal that would have extended Beijing’s influence to areas such as law enforcement and cybersecurity. Days earlier, the president of the Federated States of Micronesia had urged his counterparts in the region to reject the Chinese agreement, fearing that it would unnecessarily increase geopolitical tensions.