China’s Police Walk a Fiji Beat — Last Week in the Pacific
China’s embassies across the region marked the Dragon Boat Festival last week, celebrated with zongzi and boat races. In Vanuatu, the embassy broke from tradition and organized a group trip to Vanuatu Brewing Ltd., producer of the local Tusker beer.
The trip is analytically useful for one reason: the photos. This monitor identified several known embassy staff in the images, which show 16 people wearing matching Tusker shirts.
China does not disclose its embassy staffing numbers, and this image offers a rare window into the Vanuatu mission size. Sixteen people visible in the casual group outing likely represents a portion, not the full complement, of embassy personnel.
Summary of PRC Activity
China marked a significant step in restoring police cooperation with Fiji last week, reigniting a relationship that broke down in 2022. The PRC embassy and Fiji’s Police Ministry oversaw the handover of equipment from China to the Fiji Police Force. China has also run an intensive seminar campaign over the past two months, hosting at least 12 events in the country with participants drawn from multiple Pacific Island countries.
(Source: PRC Embassy in Vanuatu)
This Week’s Big Themes:
Police Cooperation in Fiji
On 18 June, China’s Chargé d’Affaires Wang Yuan met with Fijian Minister of Policing and Communications Ioane Naivalurua for the handover of a batch of police equipment from China to Fiji. The Ministry announcement does not specify what China provided, but a highlights video of the meeting shows Wang holding a drone. Discussion topics included: maritime domain awareness, expanding community policing infrastructure through mobile caravans, and vector-control support. Wang tied the donation to maintaining a stable domestic environment ahead of Fiji’s national elections—framing surveillance-capable equipment as a contribution to electoral security.
The meeting marks the latest step in a policing relationship that resumed in March 2024. China no longer embeds its own officers in Fiji, but the material support it provides—particularly technology with surveillance applications—gives Beijing continued influence in Fiji’s policing model.
A senior-level police officer also attended — his white uniform and epaulettes identify him as a Third Level Inspector in China’s People’s Police. Wang and the officer both appeared at the Fiji Police Force’s Passing Out Parade for Batch 69.
Supporting Events
- Fiji: Chargé d’Affaires Meets with Fiji’s Police Minister
- Fiji: Fiji Police Force Passing Out Parade
A Summer of Seminars
Over the past two months, China has run at least 12 seminars across the country for participants drawn from Pacific Island countries. Local embassies sponsor attendees’ flights in most cases. Participants include members of the Malaita Youth Council, government ministry officials, and local leaders. China frames most seminars around its development initiatives. Vanuatu’s Attorney General attended the Fifth Belt and Road Legal Cooperation Training Program in Beijing. The FSM sent staff from its Department of Resources and Development to the Management of Trade, Investment and Industrial Cooperation under the Global Development Initiative in Beijing and Sichuan.
The Solomon Islands has sent participants to four seminars over this period; Tonga has sent officials to three seminars. Through each program, China provides a curated introduction to its development model and governance approach.
Supporting Events
- Vanuatu: Attorney General Returns from Legal Seminar
- Federated States of Micronesia: Officials travel for Global Development Initiative Seminar
* The PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor provides systematic, open-source tracking of Beijing’s public diplomatic activities across the nine Pacific Island Countries hosting Chinese missions. The monitor captures official embassy social media and website posts, supplemented by local sources, to offer a weekly structured intelligence report that bridges critical information gaps on regional engagement.