Blinken visits Tonga in bid to counter China domination

Antony Blinken shakes hands with Tonga’s Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni in Nuku’alofa. Pic/AP

Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited the tiny kingdom of Tonga on Wednesday, as the US continues to increase its diplomatic efforts in the Pacific while China's influence in the region grows.

Home to just over 100,000 people, Tonga last year was the site of a massive volcanic eruption that created a tsunami, killed four people in Tonga and sent millions of tons of water vapor into the atmosphere. Blinken dedicated a new US Embassy in Tonga, which opened two months ago, and praised the return of Peace Corps volunteers following the end of the COVID pandemic.

Blinken told reporters he had concerns about China's actions in the region including some "predatory" economic activities, its assertion of "unlawful" maritime claims and an increased focus on militarization. "As China's engagement in the region has grown, there has been some, from our perspective, increasingly problematic behavior," Blinken said.

Tongan Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni said he was not concerned about the large amount of money his country had borrowed from China, and in fact this year had started to pay back the debt.

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