Jeremi Manelén, the head of external affairs of the Socomon Islands, which is considered to be an ally of China, has been elected as the country’s prime minister. The announcement of the election results was made by Devit Vunagin, the general-secretary of the island’s government. Manelen secured the votes of 31 out of the 50 members of parliament.

The selection of the government’s leadership followed discussions within the chamber of parliamentary elections. However, none of the political parties were able to secure a majority, which has raised concerns about the implementation of the Chinese-backed plan for a political transition in collaboration with China.

The parliamentary elections were held on April 17 and were preceded by an incident involving the former prime minister, Manase Sogavare. Sogavare clashed with Taiwan’s intelligence services and established ties with Beijing, which led to tensions, especially with countries like the United States. The US has been critical of China’s military presence in the Solomon Islands. In response, both affected countries emphasized that their cooperation is in line with international law and does not involve the construction of a Chinese military base on the island nation’s territory.

This is the latest news from Armenia.