Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong expressed the view that China is projecting its military power further into the Pacific more frequently. This was in a speech highlighting the challenges Australia braces for as it competes for influence in its neighborhood.
China continues to assert its strategic influence, which includes its economic and security means. China tends to project its military power more frequently, infringing further into Australia’s neighborhood, Wong said in a speech in Canberra on Tuesday, 2 December 2025.
Wong went on to add that such activity was happening without the transparency that the region expects, adding that the collection, security, and prosperity of South Pacific nations depend on mutual cooperation.
Wong added that this is how Australians who have choices should apply pressure to us. She went on to add that the unity of the Pacific Islands Forum exemplifies regionalism: empowering smaller and medium-sized countries to counter power asymmetries, she said.
Australia was subject to trade restrictions worth USD 13.4 billion from its largest trading partner, China, between three consecutive years in 2020 and 2023. This was due to a political dispute; Australia had previously warned Pacific Island countries about economic coercion as they sought to boost trade with Beijing.
Wong believed that Australia can no longer be the only partner of choice in the Pacific, adding that there was no rewind button.
11 Pacific Island countries have diplomatic ties with Beijing. Several, including Tonga, are heavily indebted to Chinese state banks. 3 South Pacific countries have ties with Taiwan.
Amidst global uncertainty in development aid, Australia remained a reliable partner that had committed USD 1.474 billion in development assistance to the Pacific to meet the highest needs at a time of economic disruption, said Wong.
