Fiji in geopolitical tilt as PM dismantles Police MOU with China

The diplomatic spat surrounding China’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Ma Zhaoxu’s visit to Suva in April 2023 captured shifting geostrategic developments in Fiji. Mr Ma’s meeting with Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka was cancelled due to a bereavement in Mr Rabuka’s family. Deputy Prime Minister Manoa Kamikamica was instead put forward to meet with Mr Ma. Chinese officials initially rejected the proposition, insisting that Mr Ma would only meet with the Fijian Prime Minister.

Mr Ma’s visit was ostensibly to deliver a message directly to Mr Rabuka about the importance of ‘treading carefully on Taiwan’ and respecting Beijing’s ‘red line’.

Growing tensions

The episode reflected growing tensions between China and Fiji.

Under its new coalition Government, Fiji is showing signs of greater alignment on security matters with its traditional partners — Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Mr Rabuka is appearing to tilt Fiji away from his predecessor’s approach of ‘friends to all, enemies to none’. Mr Rabuka even went as far as to suggest that this approach, taken by some Pacific nations, should be reconsidered. Fiji’s friends are watching closely.

Early signs of Fiji’s dismantling of its security relationship with China began under former Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama. Mr Bainimarama was concerned about the regional implications of last year’s Solomon Islands–China Framework Agreement on Security Cooperation and Beijing’s proposed — and rejected — multilateral security and trade pact.

Previous security co-operation

But in previous years, security cooperation between Fiji and China had been deepening significantly. In 2011, Fiji’s Ministry of Defence, National Security and Immigration and China’s Ministry of Public Security signed the now obsolete policing cooperation memorandum of understanding (MOU). This was thrown out by Mr Rabuka earlier in 2023.

The MOU is worth considering for what it reveals about security cooperation and strategic autonomy in the Pacific.

The MOU focussed on bilateral cooperation to address transnational crime, intelligence exchanges, police capacity-building and technology and equipment exchanges.

Numerous security co-operation activities fell under the MOU’s remit. These included China’s secondment of four officers to Fiji and two Fijian officers were attached to the Guangzhou Bureau for Public Security in 2014. Fijian Police attended courses in China that year.

China donated roughly AU$654,000 (FJ$961,537.35) worth of vehicles, communication, surveillance and anti-riot equipment to support Fiji’s 2014 elections.

2011 MOU

The 2011 MOU provided the bilateral framework for enhanced operational capabilities and co-operation including, in 2016, efforts to acquire Chinese drones.

In 2017, this culminated in a joint operation between Fiji and China, which saw several hundred Chinese police arrive in Fiji to arrest and deport 77 Chinese nationals. In 2021, a Chinese Police Liaison officer was based in Fiji — signalling China’s shift towards a more networked approach to security in the region.

Fast forward to Fiji’s election in December 2022. Sandra Tarte argues Mr Rabuka already signalled his discomfort with China’s involvement in Fiji’s affairs.

Jose Sousa-Santos is a Senior Fellow at the Australia Pacific Security College, The Australian National University.

Anna Powles is Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Defence and Security Studies at Massey University.

The report was originally published in the East Asia Forum.