Reports of naval base on Solomon Islands is ‘fake news’: China

Bloomberg

China denied reports that it plans to build a naval base in the Solomon Islands, with a Defense Ministry spokesman calling them “fake news.”
Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison said a Chinese military base in the Solomon Islands would be a “red line” for his government, after Beijing signed a security pact with the government in Honiara. The US and Japan have also dispatched envoys to the Pacific island to express concern about the agreement.
“Reports China will build a naval base in the Solomon Islands are purely fake news,” Defense Ministry spokesman Senior Colonel Tan Kefei told reporters in Beijing.
The deal facilitates cooperation on maintaining social order, protecting property, humanitarian assistance, natural disaster response and other areas of “mutual benefit,” the spokesman said.
“We urge relevant parties to stop hyping up the ‘China military threat theory’ and do more practical things that are conducive to peace, stability and prosperity in the South Pacific region,” Tan said.
While details of the security agreement aren’t public, a draft leaked in late March allowed Chinese naval vessels a safe harbor just 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) from Australia’s coastline. The US and its allies have long been concerned about the possibility of China obtaining a military foothold in the Pacific.
Manasseh Sogavare, the prime minister of the Solomon Islands, has repeatedly denied the agreement would allow China to set up a military base.
“Contrary to misinformation promoted by anti-government critics, the Solomon Islands-China Security Cooperation is not about China establishing
a military base in Solomon Islands but is about supporting the state to address its internal hard and soft security threats,” Sogavare said in a statement.