Australia and Pacific nation Nauru announced a landmark security treaty on Monday, advancing Canberra’s aim of blunting China’s growing regional influence.
Nauru surprised many Pacific watchers this year when it abruptly severed diplomatic links with Taiwan in favor of Beijing.
It joined a growing list of Pacific nations moving closer to China’s orbit, a development that has rattled Australia and its ally the United States.
A new treaty hammered out between Australia and Nauru could stymie China’s efforts to further consolidate its toehold in the Pacific microstate.
Under the deal, Nauru will seek Australia’s agreement before it signs any bilateral accords on maritime security, defense, and policing.
In return, Nauru will receive $64 million in direct budget support and a further $25 million to bolster its stretched police force.
“This treaty will make our region stronger and it will make our region safer,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said.
“It’s a good day for the security and resilience of the Pacific region.”
Nauru President David Adeang said it would give the developing nation a “vital” economic boost while enhancing “mutual security.”
Security and policing are cornerstones of Beijing’s efforts to win Pacific friends, plying nations such as Solomon Islands and Kiribati with training and gleaming new vehicles.
Nauru will also consult Australia if other parties look to strike agreements granting them access to critical infrastructure such as ports and airfields or its banking sector.
Australia has committed to keeping a retail bank open on Nauru.
Western banks have been closing branches throughout the South Pacific for years, citing political turmoil, wafer-thin profits and the high cost of doing business.
State-owned Bank of China has indicated it is eager to fill the gap in Nauru and elsewhere.
Australia ratified a similar treaty with low-lying Pacific nation Tuvalu this year.
Under that accord, Tuvalu residents will be offered the right to live in Australia if their homeland is swamped by rising seas.
Nauru, population 12,500, is one of the world’s smallest countries with a mainland measuring just 20 square kilometers (7.7 square miles).
It is considered especially vulnerable to climate change and has high rates of unemployment and health issues, a recent World Bank assessment said.
Nauru was once one of the world’s richest countries per capita, exporting the phosphate mined from the accumulated droppings of circling seabirds.
But that boon has long dried up, leaving much of the mainland a barren moonscape unsuitable for either housing or for growing food.
For years Nauru replaced some of this lost income by running an immigration detention center for asylum seekers refused entry to Australia.
Solomon Islands, Kiribati, and Nauru have all switched diplomatic allegiance from Taiwan to China since 2019.
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