SYDNEY, Australia: Australia and New Zealand have urged China to release the details of a new policing pact with the Solomon Islands, saying Beijing's latest push for influence threatens to inflame tensions in the South Pacific.

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare inked a raft of deals during a trip to Beijing this week, including an agreement allowing China to maintain a police presence in the developing Pacific nation until 2025. China has lavished attention on the Solomons since it severed ties with Taiwan in 2019, pledging large amounts of aid and bankrolling a series of critical infrastructure projects. A spokesman for Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Tuesday there were concerns the police cooperation plan between Solomon Islands and China would 'invite further regional contest.' 'Solomon Islands and China should provide transparency of their intentions to Australia and the region by publishing the agreement immediately, so the Pacific family can collectively consider the implications for our shared security,' the spokesman added.