Australia signs security pact with Nauru as China expands across Pacific
Australia has signed a landmark new pact with Nauru to provide security and critical infrastructure amid international concerns about China’s growing footprint in the Pacific.
Under the Nauru-Australia Treaty inked on Monday, the Federal Government will provide $140 million over the next five years to provide economic security support and to bolster the island’s policing capabilities.
The new agreement follows Nauru’s decision in January to switch formal diplomatic allegiance from Taiwan to China, and as Canberra jostles with Beijing for influence in the strategic Indo-Pacific region.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.The deal will see Australia’s Commonwealth Bank set up operations in the tiny nation, to ensure the population of less than 13,000 people maintains access to vital banking services.
After the change in diplomatic recognition to Beijing, representatives from the Bank of China visited Nauru to explore setting up a branch there ahead of Bendigo’s planned exit next year.
The Treaty also locks Nauru into a requirement to seek Australia’s agreement if another country offers to engage in its security, banking and telecommunications sectors, and to consult Canberra on third party engagement in other critical infrastructure.
Australia, as well as key allies including the United States, were alarmed in 2022 when a leaked draft of a security pact between Beijing and the Solomon Islands raised concerns it could pave the way for Chinese troops and naval warships being posted less than 2,000 km from the Australian coast.
The Australian government has since reinforced its willingness to widen its security cooperation across the Pacific.
“Australia is Nauru’s largest economic, security and development partner. We view this partnership as a serious responsibility and a sign of the enduring respect between our two nations,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said after meeting with Naura’s President David Adeang in Canberra.
“The Nauru-Australia Treaty will take our relationship to a new level. It will strengthen Nauru’s longer term stability and economic resilience. It is also firmly in Australia’s interest in a peaceful, secure and economically resilient Pacific region.”
President Adeang called the agreement a “historic milestone” that reaffirmed deep friendship.
“To Nauru, Australia it’s not just a friend, but family bound by shared history and values,” he said.
Shadow minister for foreign affairs Simon Birmingham welcomed any measures to secure a free, open and peaceful Pacific region, adding that such security deals built on the Coalition’s previous efforts to shore up diplomatic ties and investment with Pacific neighbours.
He said the Coalition would study the details and urged the Albanese government to follow through on its commitments to the island nation.
