China sends a message to Pacific islands amid their unease over missile test

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his Solomon Islands counterpart on Tuesday, pledging to deepen ties and reaffirming Beijing’s unconditional support for Honiara while rejecting “third-party interference”, soon after a Chinese missile test sparked protests across the Pacific. Solomons Foreign Minister Rick Houenipwela’s visit to China began at a sensitive juncture on Friday, coming just days after the ballistic missile was test-fired from a nuclear-powered submarine on July 6. The test,…