More information about Solomon Islands is available on the Solomon Islands Country Page and from other Department of State publications and other sources listed at the end of this fact sheet.

U.S.-SOLOMON ISLANDS RELATIONS 

During World War II, the United States, fighting in tandem with Solomon Islanders, Australians and other allies, and Japan contested the Solomon Islands, then a British protectorate. By the end of 1943, the Allies were in command of the entire Solomon chain. In recognition of the close ties forged between the United States and the people of Solomon Islands during World War II, the U.S. Congress financed the construction of the Solomon Islands Parliament building. The United States participates in annual commemorations of the Battle of Guadalcanal in Solomon Islands, the turning-point for Allied forces in the Pacific theater of World War II. 

The two countries established diplomatic relations following Solomon Islands’ independence from the United Kingdom in 1978. The U.S. Ambassador to Papua New Guinea is also accredited to Solomon Islands. U.S. diplomatic representation is handled by the U.S. Embassy in Papua New Guinea. The United States maintains a Consular Agency in Honiara, Solomon Islands to provide consular services to U.S. citizens. The United States and Solomon Islands are committed to working together to improve regional stability, promote democracy and human rights, combat trafficking in persons, confront environmental insecurity, increase trade, and promote sustainable economic development. 

U.S. Assistance to Solomon Islands 

In Solomon Islands and across the Pacific Islands region, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) supports programs that help communities adapt to the negative impacts of global climate change and supports disaster risk reduction programs to enhance local capacity for disaster response. In 2020, USAID launched the five-year, $25 million Strengthening Competitiveness, Agribusiness, Livelihoods and Environment (SCALE) program designed to unlock economic opportunity and increase trade over the long-run; improve natural resource management, including forest governance; promote agribusiness and small enterprise development; and expand critical small-scale infrastructure. USAID’s Pacific Islands Regional Office is located in Manila, Philippines and covers 12 nations: Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Tonga, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Nauru, Palau, Federated States of Micronesia, and Republic of the Marshall Islands. The United States builds the capacity and resilience of Solomon Islands to adapt to climate change through regional assistance that covers these 12 Pacific Island countries. 

USAID assistance supports infection prevention; community engagement; Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) activities; data collection; vaccine awareness and coordination; and assists businesses with recovering from the impact of Covid-19. In the Solomon Islands, partners supported by USAID have contributed to establishing quarantine facilities, supported case tracking, and assisted with the repatriation of Solomon Islanders stranded overseas. Learn more about the U.S. Government’s COVID-19 response in the Pacific Islands.

In December 2020 the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Board of Directors unanimously approved a $23 million threshold program with Solomon Islands. This MCC threshold program aims to assist the Solomon Islands Government in addressing the country’s biggest constraints to economic growth: management of natural resources in the logging sector and insecure access to land which limits tourism investment. This program takes an innovative approach tailored to the unique landscape in the region and integrates components of MCC’s strategic priorities, such as women’s economic empowerment and blended finance. 

From 1971 to 2000, more than 700 Peace Corps volunteers served in Solomon Islands. In October 2019 the Peace Corps announced it will re-establish operations in Solomon Islands. The Peace Corps’ efforts in Solomon Islands will initially focus on education to help re-establish the program. 

To address the significant impact of unexploded ordnance (UXO) from World War II-era battles, the United States has provided more than $6.8 million since 2011 to remove explosive hazards and build local capacity.  The United States, working in partnership with Australia and nongovernmental organizations, has trained the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force in explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) techniques.  Assistance has also developed Solomon Islands capacity to locate and track remaining UXO contamination.  

The U.S. Coast Guard conducts subject matter expert exchanges with Solomon Islands border protection officers, and the U.S. military provides international training courses to national security officials through the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies. U.S. military ships regularly call on ports in the Solomon Islands to engage in exercises and exchanges with the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force and other partners. The Defense Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Accounting Agency has been conducting operations in the Solomon Islands since 1987 and deploys missions throughout the year to recover and repatriate remains of U.S. soldiers from World War II.   

Bilateral Economic Relations 

Solomon Islands is a party to the 1987Treaty on Fisheries between the United States and 16 Pacific Island parties, which provides access to waters under the jurisdiction of the Pacific Island parties for certain U.S. fishing vessels in exchange for industry payments and promotes broader cooperation. Under a separate Economic Assistance Agreement associated with the Treaty, the United States government provides $21 million per year to support economic development in the region through the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency, which is based in Honiara, Solomon Islands. According to U.S. Census Bureau data, in 2020 the United States exported $4.7 million worth of goods to Solomon Islands and imported $3.3 million worth of goods. 

Solomon Islands’ Membership in International Organizations 

Solomon Islands and the United States belong to a number of the same international organizations, including the United Nations, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, World Trade Organization, the Pacific Community, and Pacific Regional Environment Programme. Solomon Islands also belongs to the Pacific Islands Forum, of which the United States is a Dialogue Partner. 

Bilateral Representation 

Principal embassy officials are listed in the Department’s Key Officers List. 

Solomon Islands does not have an embassy in Washington, DC, but has a permanent representative to the United Nations in New York who is also accredited as ambassador to the United States. The Solomon Islands Mission to the UN is located at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400 L, New York, NY 10017. 

More information about Solomon Islands is available from the Department of State and other sources, some of which are listed here:

USAID Solomon Islands Page 
CIA World Factbook Solomon Islands Page 
U.S. Census Bureau Foreign Trade Statistics 
Travel Information

U.S. Department of State

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