New Foreign Minister Penny Wong has made a public pitch to maintain Australia's influence in the Pacific, highlighting Canberra's renewed focus on climate change and continued economic support for the region.
During a press conference for local media on the second day of a visit to Fiji, Senator Wong said Australia's new government had a clear message: "We are listening and we have heard you."
Climate was one of the areas the government was determined to make a difference on and that was something Fiji and other Pacific Islander nations had been wanting for years, she said.
"What is at the heart of this is a strong desire to play our part in the Pacific family and build stronger relationships," she said.
Senator Wong met with Fiji Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama on Friday to discuss climate change and strategic contest in the Pacific.
She later tweeted a photo of her meeting with the Fijian leader and reaffirmed "Australia's commitment to the Vuvale Partnership".
"I valued the opportunity to hear the Prime Minister's insights as a global leader on climate change," she wrote.
In a speech after arriving in Fiji on Thursday, Senator Wong had said previous Australian governments had let down the Pacific family on climate change.
Senator Wong's arrival in Fiji on Thursday coincided with the first leg of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's eight-nation tour of the Pacific, during which he is seeking a sweeping regional deal on security and trade.
When asked whether the Australian government was concerned about Chinese influence in the Pacific, Senator Wong said it was for Pacific nations to make their own decisions about who they want to partner with.
"We respect that," she said.
"We want to be a partner of choice and demonstrate to your nation and other nations in the region that we are a partner who can be trusted and [is] reliable, and historically we have been."
Mr Wang's first stop was Solomon Islands, the same nation with which China signed a security pact last month in a move that sent shock waves around the world.
That pact has raised fears that China could send troops to the island nation or even establish a military base there, not far from Australia.
Solomon Islands and China say there are no plans for a base.
In another move by China, a draft document shows Mr Wang is hoping to strike a deal with 10 Pacific nations during his tour.
The sweeping agreement covers everything from security to fisheries and is seen by at least one Pacific leader as an attempt by Beijing to wrest control of the region.
Solomon Islands rolled out the red carpet for Mr Wang, who met with high-level officials including Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele, Governor General Sir David Vunagi and Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare.
International media access during Mr Wang's visit was curtailed.
Chinese media reported that during the meeting, Mr Sogavare and Mr Wang expressed willingness to forge "iron-clad" ties and deepen cooperation between the two countries.
Mr Sogavare reportedly thanked China for providing support and help to the development of Solomon Islands and once again reaffirmed his support for the "one-China principle".
Mr Wang reportedly said China appreciated Solomon Islands' "determination to safeguard its own national interests, strong desire to develop China-Solomon Islands friendly cooperation and adherence to the one-China principle".
In a statement, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said China had never "interfered in the internal affairs of island countries", sought a "sphere of influence" in the region or "left any island country mired in debt or security threat".
It said China and Australia had "unique strengths and advantages" and called for co-operation between the two countries in the Pacific.
"There is enough space in the vast Pacific Ocean for China, Australia and all island countries to share peace, development and prosperity," it said.
During his 10-day visit, Mr Wang is also planning to make stops in Kiribati, Samoa, Fiji, Tonga, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and Timor-Leste.
Next stop, Kiribati
Kiribati has closed its borders in a bid to stamp out an outbreak of COVID-19. However, its government made a rare exception to allow Mr Wang and his 20-strong delegation into the country on Friday for a four-hour visit.
However, most members of the large Chinese delegation remained at the airport due to COVID restrictions, a Kiribati official said.
Kiribati was focused on trade and tourism opportunities with China, and was not keen on a security arrangement, according to the Kiribati official who was not authorised to speak to media.
The official said a controversial plan to reopen a protected marine zone for fishing, and to upgrade an airstrip on Canton island, were not among agreements due to be signed.
One expert had predicted the future of Kiribati's Phoenix Islands Protected Area, a stretch of ocean the size of California and a UNESCO World Heritage site, would be up for discussion during Mr Wang's short time in the country.
In November, Kiribati President Taneti Maamau announced the government planned to end the commercial fishing ban that had been in place since 2015 and begin to sustainably fish the area.
Anna Powles, a senior lecturer in security studies at New Zealand's Massey University, said she expected there would be some fisheries agreements between China and Kiribati that would come from Mr Wang's visit.
Dr Powles said China, which already dominated fishing in the region, had offered to upgrade an airport runway and causeway in the Phoenix Island group.
She said there were also concerns that any kind of base for Chinese commercial fishing fleets in Kiribati could also be used as an additional hub for Beijing's surveillance activities.
Kiribati's President said Mr Wang would visit his residence for bilateral discussions during the visit, and emphasised the health protocols that were in place.
Academics call for reset on relationship
Back in Australia, several high-profile China Studies academics have written an open letter to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Senator Wong, calling on the new government to "replace the language of war" and mend "poor diplomatic relations" between China and Australia.
"The change in government presents the opportunity for a circuit breaker in the poor diplomatic relations that have developed between Australia and China in the recent past," the letter, which is signed by the directors of Australia's major China Centres, reads.
"We acknowledge that the new government is likely to avoid the over-aggressive approach of its predecessor.
"In our view, less public aggression is likely to be more effective in dealing with China: international engagement should replace the language of war."
The letter says the growth of China as a global power "is bound to be disruptive", but that "two-way communication not 'megaphone diplomacy' is needed".
"While appreciating the tremendous difficulties ahead we urge this adjustment in approach to China."
US outlines strategy for China
Meanwhile, in Washington, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has outlined the United States' strategy to address China's rise as a great power.
The US would not try to change China's political system, but would defend international law and institutions that maintained peace and security and made it possible for countries to coexist, Mr Blinken said during a speech on Thursday local time.
"We are not looking for conflict or a new Cold War. To the contrary, we're determined to avoid both," he said in the 45-minute speech at George Washington University, which covered most contentious bilateral issues.
Mr Blinken said China posed "the most serious long-term challenge to the international order".
He laid out the contours of a strategy to invest in US competitiveness and align with allies and partners to compete with China, calling that competition "ours to lose."
He said the Biden administration stood ready to increase direct communication with Beijing across a full range of issues, and would "respond positively" if Chinese officials take action to address concerns.
"But we cannot rely on Beijing to change its trajectory. So we will shape the strategic environment around Beijing to advance our vision for an open and inclusive international system," he said.
In response, China's Washington embassy said the United States and China shared "extensive common interests and profound cooperation potential" and "competition... should not be used to define the overall picture of the China-US relations."
"China and the US both stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation," embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu said.
He noted a virtual summit between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping last November and said the relationship was "at a critical crossroads."
"We hope the US side will work with China to earnestly implement the common understanding reached by the two leaders to enhance communication, manage differences and focus on cooperation," he said.
ABC/wires
