Fearful of Chinese influence, the Australian government assisted the construction of the Solomon Islands submarine cable

Australia announced Wednesday that it would help fund a new submarine cable system linking Sydney to the Solomon Islands, squeezing a bid by China's Huawei Corp as it vies with China for diplomatic influence
in the South Pacific.

According to reports, the high-speed submarine fiber optic cable will extend from the east coast of Australia to Port Moresby and Honiara in Papua New Guinea, and then connect the remote provinces
of the Solomon Islands.

The Solomon Islands government initially considered allowing Huawei to take charge of the project, but the Solomon Islands government reconsidered the company's involvement
due to Australian concerns.
In 2012, Australia banned Huawei from bidding for its own national broadband network project, saying it would "raise security concerns.
"

According to the Lowy Institute in Sydney, China has stepped up its diplomatic and economic engagement
in the Pacific as part of its global competitiveness.
Since 2006, China has signed at least $1.
8 billion in aid and loans
.
That has raised concerns in Australia, which remains the region's largest donor, with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop saying earlier this month that "we see the Pacific as part of our world" and that "we want to continue to be the partner
of choice for countries in the region.
" ”

Prime Minister Turnbull said: "We are concerned with ensuring Australia's assistance to support the economic and social development of the Pacific region, which is why we are building this submarine cable system
.
" Funding will come from Australia's aid budget, which will not affect the total cost
.
”

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said: "What we are offering to the Solomon Islands government and Papua New Guinea is an alternative to Huawei, and our offer is cheaper, more technologically superior and more resilient
.
" They also accepted the programme
.
”

It is reported that the Australian government will provide 200 million Australian dollars for the project, accounting for about two-thirds of the cost of the project, to connect the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea to Australia
through optical cables.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is considering whether Sydney, Townsville or the Sunshine Coast are the best connection points
in Australia.
According to the plan, the submarine cable will be operational by the end of 2019 and will free the Solomon Islands from relying on satellite connections
.

Bloomberg said that this has not stopped Chinese company Huawei from winning new projects
in Australia.
Huawei is bidding to help build Australian telecommunications company Telstra's 5G mobile phone network and to build communications systems
for Perth's metropolitan rail system under a 120 million Australian dollar ($91 million) contract.