Bloomberg
Australia would open a defense school to train its Pacific Island neighbours, increase foreign aid and support climate mitigation projects across the region, under an election policy announced by the opposition Labor Party that aims to boost the country’s soft power.
Labor has been critical of a new security pact between China and the Solomon Islands, accusing Prime Minister Scott Morrison of making Australia “less secure†by failing to prevent the deal. Labor’s shadow Foreign Minister Penny Wong described the pact as the “worst failure of Australian foreign policy in the Pacific since the end of World War II.â€
Morrison dismissed Labor’s new policy as “farcicalâ€, while Foreign Minister Marise Payne said much of the policy announced so far was already being undertaken by the government. Morrison has maintained the Solomon Islands is a sovereign nation which is entitled to make its own diplomatic decisions.
“We’ve been very focused on our investment in the Pacific to keep Australians safe. And what we’ve done around the world has been acknowledged,†Morrison said on
2GB Radio.