Scott Morrison says China building a military base on Solomon Islands would be the “red line” for Australia and the United States, but did not say how Australia would respond if it happened.

Key points:

• Mr Morrison says Australia will not have Chinese naval bases “on our doorstep”
• Deputy PM Barnaby Joyce says Solomon Islands is risking its sovereignty by signing the security deal with China
• Labor’s Penny Wong has all but confirmed more foreign aid spending in the Pacific if the party is elected

There are concerns about a recently signed security agreement between China and Solomon Islands and what it could mean for Australia and other pacific countries, especially if China uses the deal to expand its military presence to the region.

“This is a shared concern, not just Australia, this is Australia and regional governments, particularly places like Fiji and Papua New Guinea,” Mr Morrison said.

“Working together with our partners in New Zealand and of course the United States, I share the same red line that the United States has when it comes to these issues.

“We won’t be having Chinese military naval bases in our region on our doorstep.”

Mr Morrison would not say how he would respond if re-elected, if the “red line” was crossed and China did move to establish a military base.

He instead said that Solomon Island’s Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare assured him it would not happen.

“So he clearly shares our red line,” Mr Morrison said.

The government has faced sustained criticism from the opposition about the deal, with Labor arguing the Coalition should have done more to prevent it, including sending Foreign Minister Marise Payne to Solomon Islands when concerns about the pact first arose last year.

The Prime Minister and senior Labor figures were both campaigning in Alice Springs with their candidates for the seat of Lingiari.

Shadow Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong all but confirmed if Labor was elected it would increase the foreign aid spend in the Pacific, to secure the region.

She said there were a number of things Labor would have done differently to prevent the pact if it had been in government.

“We wouldn’t have cut foreign and development assistance which is important to development and national security. We wouldn’t have cut bilateral aid by 28 per cent on average every year,” Senator Wong said.

“We wouldn’t have mocked Pacific Island nations about water lapping at their doors which is what Peter Dutton did standing next to Scott Morrison.

“And we wouldn’t have thumbed our nose at Pacific leaders when they told us at a forum that climate change was their number one national security issue. 

“So yes, I do think there’s a different approach. Do I think it’s easy? No, I do not which is why it shouldn’t be the subject of shrill scare campaigns.” 

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