Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed to strengthen ties with Fiji amid a turbulent world as he met with the Pacific island's Prime Minister, Sitiveni Rabuka, in Beijing on Tuesday (20/8).
China has stepped up its approach to South Pacific nations in recent years, raising concerns among Western nations – particularly the United States and Australia – that have historically dominated the region.
Rabuka met Xi at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing after touring China for more than a week.
“The two countries have always supported and helped each other as good friends, good partners, and have become a model of equal and friendly cooperation between a big country and a small country,” Xi told Rabuka.
He said Beijing wanted to “promote the building of a China-Fiji community with a shared future in a world full of turmoil and chaos, and bring more benefits to the people of the two countries.”
Xi also praised Fiji's recent sporting success in rugby, where the country won a silver medal at the Paris Olympics last month.
Rabuka thanked the Chinese leader, and told Xi that “Fiji is ready to send rugby coaches and players to come to China to play with the Chinese team.”
He also praised Xi's meeting last year with US President Joe Biden in San Francisco, where he said “you may have brought about world peace.”
Rabuka has taken a more cautious stance on China’s growing security interests in the Pacific, praising Fiji’s warming ties with Beijing and saying he prefers to deal with democratic “traditional friends” on security.
Fiji and China signed a series of bilateral agreements on trade, military assistance, infrastructure and Mandarin language education during Rabuka's visit, according to statements from both governments.
Premier Li Qiang pledged at a meeting with Rabuka on Sunday to increase imports from Fiji and encourage Chinese investment there, according to a Chinese government statement.
Rabuka also praised Beijing's “innovative, tailor-made poverty alleviation strategies” during a trip to Ningde city in eastern China's Fujian province.
The Fijian prime minister last met Xi at an Asia-Pacific economic summit in San Francisco last year, when the Chinese leader committed to helping Fiji safeguard its “security and sovereignty.”
Rabuka said after the talks that China could help develop Fiji's ports and shipyards and praised Beijing's track record of assistance to his country in fighting COVID-19, developing agriculture and improving infrastructure.
China alarmed Western nations when it signed a secret defense pact with the Solomon Islands last year, sparking fears it would deploy military forces there.
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele visited China in June and the Pacific nation later said Beijing would inject $20 million into its government budget. (about/after)
