‘No foreign military base’: Australia, Vanuatu ink pact in major blow to China

News.com - A freshly inked pact with Vanuatu ensures there will be “no foreign military base” in the archipelago, Anthony Albanese has declared, as China hunts for a military foothold in the Pacific.

The Prime Minister and his Ni-Vanuatu counterpart Jotham Napat signed the Nakamal Agreement in Canberra on Monday 10 months after Chinese pressure halted the original pitch.

“Our agreement reflects and confirms Australia’s role as Vanuatu’s largest and most comprehensive economic, security and development partner – a responsibility that we take seriously,” Mr Albanese said.

“We have concluded a balanced agreement that will protect our collective and individual security and our sovereignty.

“And it will support our interest in a stable, prosperous and secure region that we both call home.”

He went on to say the agreement “advances the consensus that security is the shared responsibility of the Pacific family, the members of the Pacific Island Forum”, of which China is not.

“It encapsulates Vanuatu’s sovereign decision not to permit its territory to be used for any foreign military base or infrastructure and that Vanuatu’s critical infrastructure remains free from militarisation,” he said.

Members of Mr Napat’s complex coalition government feared the original terms, which restricted foreign investment in Vanuatu’s critical infrastructure, would stop funds flowing from China.

It was an unexpected hurdle that left Mr Albanese wrapping up a much-hyped visit to Vanuatu last year with nothing more than photos and pledges to keep talking.

Government sources familiar with negotiations but not authorised to speak publicly told NewsWire at the time the pact was all-but signed ahead of that visit.

In the new version signed on Monday, Vanuatu is not restricted from taking cash from other countries but must “consult Australia on proposed third party engagement” in its critical infrastructure.

The agreement noted Vanuatu’s critical infrastructure must be “free from militarisation, any form of foreign interference or unauthorised access”.

The new version also highlighted Australia’s role as its primary policing and security partner.

Mr Napat was tight-lipped about the fate of a similar agreement in the works with China, saying it still needed “clearance from Beijing”.

“So, currently it is not yet signed,” he said, adding that his government “will share the agreement” with Australia.

“There’s nothing to hide. Our government is transparent. And I am so grateful that the Prime Minister has also given me the clearance to share the Nakamal Agreement.”