PINA

The U.S Department of Defence is seeking to secure the Federated States of Micronesia’s (FSM) borders, lining up several projects throughout the Pacific nation designed to boost regional security. FSM officials received project updates from defence officials during the 2024 Joint Committee Meeting held on 13 - 14 November in Chuuk. “This two-day meeting brought together officials from both nations to...

Senior police officers from Australia and Papua New Guinea have monitored the destruction of 500kg of cocaine, which was seized by authorities in 2020 after the black flight believed to have been transporting it to Australia crashed. The drugs, which were seized in PNG but later sent to the AFP for forensic testing and storage in Australia, were incinerated last...

Binding global targets to cut plastic production must be at the centre of any continuing negotiations to secure the world’s first treaty to tackle plastic waste, a group of 85 countries has said. Talks in Busan, South Korea, attempting to secure agreement between more than 200 countries on the details of a plastic pollution treaty ended in failure over the...

The CIVICUS Monitor has announced in a new report Wednesday that it has upgraded Fiji’s civic space to “Narrowed” from “Obstructed” in its annual ratings with the expansion of space for civil society and the exercise of fundamental freedoms. Fiji’s upgraded rating, detailed in the People Power Under Attack 2024 report, reflects steps taken by the government over the last...

Vanuatu’s Special Envoy for Climate Change, Ralph Regenvanu, has slammed Australia, the United States, and other major polluters for their stance during the International Court of Justice (ICJ) climate hearings in The Hague. Regenvanu accused the nations of hiding behind failed treaties instead of taking meaningful action to curb emissions. “Today, as sea levels rise and the impacts of climate change...

The Fiji Truth and Reconciliation (TRC) Commission Bill 2024 was passed in Parliament Wednesday night after a robust debate. While moving his motion to debate the bill, Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka highlighted that the central purpose of the commission will be aimed at promoting civil reconciliation and forgiveness among the perpetrators and victims of various coups and political persecution. Rabuka said...

Taiwan President William Lai Tuesday arrived in the Pacific nation of Tuvalu, with the two nations signing a joint communique on advancing their partnership. Lai’s one-day trip to Tuvalu came ahead of a stopover in the U.S territory of Guam. Earlier, he was in the Marshall Islands, where Marshallese President Hilda Heine expressed her government’s commitment to “remain a staunch ally”...

The Albanese government hopes to end the year with a major foreign policy victory by signing a landmark pact with Nauru aimed at preventing China from gaining a security foothold in the Pacific. The deal with Nauru, home to Australia’s offshore detention centre, comes after months of secretive talks with the tiny Pacific nation, which has been known to drive...

Pacific Island envoys in Australia will gather to discuss a labour scheme that has been criticised as being a breeding ground for slavery-like conditions. Tens of thousands of islanders are in Australia as part of the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme that provides visas for short and long-term stints working in areas like agriculture, horticulture and meat processing. The federal...

Criminals are always looking for an edge. Listening to what the Pacific needs and coordinating maritime security responses will help blunt the threat. By Henrietta McNeill Genevieve Quirk In recent Australian maritime security conversations, it would be fair to say that submarines have featured fairly prominently. Although the tenor of sub talks this week still proved head-turning, when a 62-country operation busted...