Australia rushed peacekeepers to the Solomon Islands Thursday hoping to quell riots that threatened to topple the Pacific nation's government and left its capital ablaze.
After a second day of widespread protests and looting in Honiara, Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare called on neighbouring Australia for help.
The latest bout of unrest began on Wednesday when thousands of protesters besieged parliament, setting fire to an outbuilding and calling for Sogavare's ouster. In Beijing, foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian expressed "grave concern" and called on the Solomon Islands government "to take all necessary measures to protect the safety of Chinese citizens and organisations".The unrest has been sparked by pandemic-fuelled economic frustrations and a long-running rivalry between residents of the country's most populous island Malaita and the Guadalcanal-based central government.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the latest Australian deployment was expected to last "a matter of weeks", unlike Canberra's previous peacekeeping mission, which ran from 2003 to 2017 and cost about US$2.2 billion. The province's premier Daniel Suidani has accused Sogavare of being in Beijing's pocket, alleging he had "elevated the interest of foreigners above those of Solomon Islanders".Experts say geopolitical rivalry is now fuelling the crisis.
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