BEIJING - China and the Solomon Islands agreed Monday to bolster their strategic partnership during summit talks in Beijing, the Asian country's state-run media said, as China plays tug-of-war with the United States over wider influence in the Pacific region.

Chinese President Xi Jinping told Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare that Beijing supports more investment by Chinese firms in the Pacific island nation and pledged continued economic and technical assistance to it, China Central Television said.

The Solomon Islands switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 2019 and signed a wide-reaching security agreement with China in April last year.

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Sogavare said China has become his country's largest partner in cooperation on infrastructure projects and pledged its firm adherence to the one-China principle. The two leaders met at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, according to CCTV.

Earlier in the day, Sogavare, who is on a weeklong official visit to China through Saturday, held talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang.

Li told Sogavare that the bilateral relationship has "developed rapidly in just four years," and establishing diplomatic ties was "a correct choice that conforms to the trend of the times," CCTV said.

The Solomon Islands prime minister expressed willingness to deepen cooperation with China in tackling such challenges as climate change, the report said. During his visit, he is also scheduled to travel to Jiangsu and Guangdong provinces.

Alarmed by Beijing's overtures, the United States reopened an embassy in the Solomon Islands in January after closing it in 1993 partly because of budget cuts.

The security accord between China and the Solomon Islands reportedly allows Beijing to deploy its military and dock vessels in the strategically significant nation, prompting concerns from such countries as the United States, Japan and Australia over China's growing influence in the region.

Sogavare has repeatedly denied that the pact would allow China to establish a military presence in the islands.

==Kyodo