U.S. Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman speaks during a panel with Friends of Europe in Brussels, Belgium April 21, 2022. REUTERS/Johanna Geron/File Photo
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WASHINGTON, July 24 (Reuters) – U.S. Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and U.S. Ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy plan to visit the Solomon Islands, where their fathers fought in World War II, next month and where the United States is engaged in a modern-day battle. influence with its strategic rival, China.
Sherman and his delegation will commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Guadalcanal during his Aug. 6-8 visit and meet with senior officials “to underscore the enduring relationship between the United States and the Solomon Islands” and plan to open an embassy in the capital, Honiara, a senior State Department official told Reuters on Sunday.
Sherman will be just the latest senior US official to visit the Pacific region as Washington steps up its efforts to repel Chinese diplomatic incursions.
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In addition to Kennedy – whose father, assassinated US President John F. Kennedy, served in the Solomon Islands campaign as a patrol captain during World War II – Sherman’s delegation will include Lieutenant General of the Corps of Marines Stephen Sklenka, deputy commander of US Indo- Pacific Command and the commandant of Marine Corps Pacific, Lt. Gen. Stephen Rudder.
The State Department official said the visit would also be of interest to Sherman, whose father, Mal Sherman, was a Marine wounded in the Battle of Guadalcanal, which began between U.S. and Allied and Japanese forces in August 1942.
The six-month battle marked the beginning of US-led offensive operations in the Pacific, showing the strategic importance of the Solomons that continues today.
In Honiara, Sherman will speak at a U.S.-hosted ceremony at Skyline Ridge, site of the U.S. Guadalcanal Memorial, as well as a Solomon Islands-hosted memorial at Bloody Ridge. She will also attend commemorative events hosted by the Solomon Islands and Japan, now a close US ally.
“These events will recognize the service and sacrifice of those who fought in the Battle of Guadalcanal, including U.S. and allied forces, the people of the Solomon Islands and the people of Japan,” the official said.
A State Department spokesperson said Washington is seeking to “significantly deepen ‘Engagement with the Pacific Islands’ and embark on a positive new chapter … with an increased US presence where we will commit to work. with the Pacific Islands in the short and long term to address the most pressing issues facing them.
“The Deputy Secretary’s trip to the South Pacific reflects the deep investment of the United States in the region,” the spokesperson added.
China is seeking to strengthen economic, military and police ties with Pacific island nations hungry for foreign investment. Washington underscored its historical ties to the Pacific, particularly the sacrifices shared during World War II, and pledged to commit more resources. Read more
Beijing’s growing influence has been highlighted by its security pact with the Solomon Islands this year, a move that has stoked concerns in Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Read more
In February, Antony Blinken became the first US Secretary of State to visit Fiji in 40 years. While there, he announced plans to open an embassy in the Solomon Islands and called the Pacific “the region of the future”. read more Washington has not yet given a date for the opening of the embassy.
A high-level US delegation visited the Solomons in April and warned that Washington would have “significant concerns and respond accordingly” to any move to establish a permanent Chinese military presence there. Read more
At a four-day summit this month, Pacific island nations warned the two superpowers wooing them which are the world’s biggest carbon emitters to take more action on climate change, while promising unity in the face of growing geopolitical competition. Read more
Leaders at the Fiji summit also bristled at a Chinese attempt to carve some of the nations into a trade and security deal, while Washington pledged more financial and diplomatic engagement.
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Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk and David Brunnstrom; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Leslie Adler
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