China and the Pacific Islands

Senior members of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission are warning Congress that Chinese‑financed runways, ports and other infrastructure across Pacific Island nations are often 'dual use' and could later be used by the People’s Liberation Army, posing a long‑term threat to nearby U.S. bases such as Guam. In an interview, Chair Randall Schriver said many projects labeled civilian come with 'strings attached' that can include future military access, while Vice Chair Michael Kuiken described a 'flywheel' of debt diplomacy in which Beijing loads small island states with loans and then leverages their weakness for strategic concessions. The commissioners say Washington was slow to recognize the security implications of these deals, even as it poured its own resources into Guam, and now needs to tighten oversight and prioritize competing investments. They point to Chinese‑backed projects like the Woleai runway in Micronesia and provocative activities such as undersea cable cutting as warning signs, and say visible PLA aircraft deployments at Pacific airfields would mark a major escalation. The interview underscores growing concern in U.S. national‑security circles that Beijing’s Pacific footprint could eventually support logistics, ISR, and power projection against U.S. forces and territory.