PINA

The largest-ever war-fighting drills in Australia, Exercise Talisman Sabre, are underway and expected to attract the attention of Chinese spy ships. Australia launched missiles from its M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, known as HIMARS, on Monday during live-fire exercises at the Shoalwater Bay Training Area, a 4,500 square kilometre (1,700 square mile) Outback expanse in Queensland state. The HIMARS...

Fiji’s Minister for Fisheries and Forestry, Alitia Bainivalu, says the $24.9 million(US$12.45 million) budget allocated to her ministry is aimed at overhauling the country’s fisheries sector, warning Parliament that Fiji’s fishers ‘do not need just words of support — they need cold storage that works, boats that are seaworthy, markets that are accessible, and ecosystems that are alive’. In her...

On 23 July, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) will deliver a landmark opinion on states’ legal duties for climate change — a historic moment for climate justice. For leaders and advocates across the Pacific, this moment marks the conclusion of a six-year journey led by Pacific youth, the Republic of Vanuatu, and other Pacific Island nations. “This is a turning...

Securing the Pacific COP31 is one of the most important shared goals of the Pacific Island nations today. While responding to a question at the Pacific Regional and National Security Conference about which issues should be prioritised if the Pacific hosts COP31, Fiji deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Professor Biman Prasad emphasised the need for a home COP...

“The Ocean of Peace is a signal that we seek a region in which strategic competition is managed; where stability is the touchstone of regional relationships; and where coercion is eschewed. The Ocean of Peace reflects my belief that a united region is a strong region: that when we speak with one voice, our power is magnified.” This was highlighted...

Fiji's Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has sounded a stark warning over the growing challenges facing the Pacific region, declaring that the “Blue Pacific” has long been exploited, threatened, and overlooked — and must now take charge of its own security future. Speaking at the opening of the 2025 Pacific Regional and National Security Conference in Suva, Rabuka said the Pacific...

Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General Baron Waqa has called for stronger, more inclusive regional security cooperation to tackle growing global and regional threats, as the Pacific Regional and National Security Conference opened in Suva today. “Building a safer Pacific is not the work of one sector or institution. It requires all of us, working in step, to shape a stronger,...

The Pacific Islands Forum’s Deputy Secretary General Esala Nayasi has praised Solomon Islands for its leadership ahead of the 54th Forum Leaders Meeting, calling the gathering a “decisive moment” for the region. “Let me begin by congratulating you, Prime Minister, your Government and the People of Solomon Islands for your unwavering commitment and leadership in hosting this year’s Forum,” Nayasi...

Vanuatu Prime Minister Jotham Napat says the upcoming climate opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) will be a “defining moment in the global climate justice movement,” as the world awaits the court’s ruling on 23 July. “We eagerly await the landmark opinion of the world's highest court on the greatest existential challenge facing our planet: the climate crisis....

By Nic Maclellan Meeting in France, New Caledonian political leaders have signed an agreement on the political and economic future of the French Pacific dependency. The signing of the Bougival Accord on 12 July, described as “historic” by French President Emmanuel Macron, came after ten days of closed-doors talks in the town of Bougival, on the outskirts of Paris. After years of...