The nation's former attorney general was named prime minister of the tiny South Pacific nation Monday. It was not immediately clear how the new government will affect China's influence in the country.
At least 26 combatants and an unconfirmed number of bystanders were killed in a gunbattle between warring tribes in Papua New Guinea, police said Monday.
The pact between the two countries is likely to raise concerns among the South Pacific island's traditional partners including Australia, New Zealand and the United States.
Scott Morrison says he followed security officials' advice in managing relations with the Solomon Islands after the South Pacific neighbor's leader alleged he'd been threatened with invasion.
Under the Solomon Islands' terms of a draft agreement, China could send police, military personnel and other armed forces to the Solomon Islands "to assist in maintaining social order."
