Upgrading their ties, China and Timor-Leste agreed to co-operation under the Belt and Road Initiative championed by Xi, that could open the way for investment in infrastructure.
Loading
Looking beyond South-East Asia, China has built ties with small nations in the Pacific during recent years, worrying the US and allies Australia and New Zealand, who have long seen the region as their sphere of influence.
China sent its military-run hospital ship to the Pacific in July to visit countries including Timor-Leste and Solomon Islands.
In a joint declaration, released on state-run China Central Television (CCTV), China said it would provide help for Timor-Leste’s economic and societal development.
Biden’s summit with the 18-member forum will take place on Monday and Tuesday (US time) in Washington.
Loading
“We are disappointed that PM Sogavare of the Solomons does not plan to attend,” a Biden administration official said.
Solomon Islands Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele will reportedly attend the summit instead.
The Solomon Islands Prime Minister’s Office did not respond to a request for comment.
Sogavare spoke at the United Nations General Assembly on Friday in New York, where he praised China’s development co-operation as “less restrictive, more responsive and aligned to our national needs”, and said Beijing was its lead infrastructure partner.
Sogavare said he reached an understanding with President Xi Jinping during a July visit to China for Solomon Islands to achieve development through China’s policies, including the Belt and Road Initiative and Global Security Initiative.
Vanuatu’s Prime Minister Sato Kilman also will not attend the meeting, an official from his office said, because all Vanuatu government lawmakers need to be in parliament on Monday for a no-confidence vote.
Reuters
Get a note directly from our foreign correspondents on what’s making headlines around the world. Sign up for the weekly What in the World newsletter here.