Trumpīs neglect of the region has left a political vacuum that China is rushing to fill - and small nations such as the Solomon Islands are stuck in the middleIf anything demonstrates the interconnectedness of the 21st-century world, it is how a decision made in the Solomon Islands, population 650,000, in the remote South Pacific, can affect the behaviour of powerful countries on the other side of the globe. That, in a way, is exactly what happened last week when Nato leaders met in London. Top of their agenda was Donald Trumpīs demand that Europe pay more for its defence. But why is the US so exercised about so-called `burden-sharing`? In part because, these days, it is looking west, not east.The US has identified China, not Russia, as the biggest strategic, economic and potential military rival to its global leadership. Barack Obama, who was dubbed the `Pacific president`, formalised this shift with his 2011 `pivot to Asia`, which prioritised the region. Related: When China came calling: inside the Solomon Islands switch Continue reading...
|
