The Solomon Islands’ new PM Jeremiah Manele says Australia and China are “equally” important to his Pacific nation. Voters elected MPs across the country on 17 April, but the PM was selected by elected representatives in a poll yesterday. Manele is an ally of the former leader Manasseh Sogavare and was elected by Parliament 31-18 votes, defeating Opposition Leader Matthew Wales. While Manele was Foreign Minister in the previous government, ANU Professor Graeme Smith expects he’ll take a less confrontational approach to Australia, saying “it will definitely lower the temperature”. Former PM Sogavare caused a huge diplomatic stir by signing a security agreement with Beijing in 2022. And while Manele says he’ll be keeping that agreement in place – he’s promised a foreign policy of “friends to all, enemies to none”.