PINA

The former Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama says Fiji’s vote at the United Nations on the war between Israel and Hamas demmonstrated our lack of compassion for those who have been displaced as a result of the conflict. Bainimarama said that instead of taking sides in the conflict, government’s stand should have been to save the thousands of innocent lives, including...

The Australian Government will provide an initial $800,000 (US$506,804) to support the Government of Vanuatu's immediate response to Tropical Cyclone Lola, and is liaising closely with the Government of Solomon Islands on its needs following the cyclone. The package will provide essential items for impacted communities, including shelter and water purification supplies, in line with the Government of Vanuatu's priorities. Funding...

Fiji Bati produced a clinical performance to stun the Papua New Guinea Kumuls 43-16 in Port Moresby on Sunday. With Maika Sivo and Kurt Donoghue both claiming a double at Santos National Football Stadium, the Bati blew the game open early in the piece with the Kumuls unable to match the visitors' speed and class in attack. However the Kumuls refused...

The country's rugby union governing body Lakapi Samoa has thrown its support behind World Rugby's new annual 15s competition involving six nations including Samoa. A number of decisions at the recent World Rugby's Council meeting in Paris, France which saw the unveiling of a new international men's calendar to comprise a tournament made up of 24 teams and starting in...

New Zealand number eight Ardie Savea has been crowned World Rugby Men’s 15s Player of the Year in partnership with Mastercard, receiving the prestigious accolade at a star-studded World Rugby Awards 2023 ceremony on Sunday. Just hours after South Africa defeated Savea’s All Blacks to lift the Webb Ellis Cup for an historic fourth time at Stade de France, the...

South Africa became the first nation to win four Rugby World Cup titles after holding off New Zealand in a dramatic final at Stade de France on Saturday. Four Handre Pollard penalties to two from Richie Mo’unga gave the Springboks a 12-6 lead after a first half in which All Blacks flanker Shannon Frizell was sin-binned for an incident in...

A long-running bid for global recognition of a Pacific-owned, initiated and led Resilience fund for disaster-proofing islands nations has received the nod from the United States and Australia. The Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF) is a concept of Forum Leaders keen to build up a fund easing access to funding for helping Pacific nations invest in proactive preparation for disasters to...

U.S President Joe Biden has warned Anthony Albanese against fully trusting China, ahead of the prime minister’s meeting with President Xi Jinping in Beijing next week, and urged Congress to pass AUKUS-related legislation this year. Speaking alongside Albanese at a joint press conference in the White House Rose Garden, Biden pledged to stick by Australia because both countries were Pacific...

Fiji's Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has announced the South Pacific Connect Initiative a significant milestone in reducing the digital divide and enhancing the capacity, resilience and reliability of digital connectivity across the Pacific. The initiative will establish a new subsea cable to link the United States, Fiji, Australia, and French Polynesia. The South Pacific Connect initiative is a collaborative effort with...

United States President Biden Joe Biden welcomes Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on 25 October 2023 for an official visit in Washington D.C this week. The two leaders reaffirmed the strength of the U.S-Australia alliance and the evolution of its reach beyond defence and security into a force for increased prosperity and innovation across the Indo-Pacific region and around the...