PINA

The prime ministers of Australia and New Zealand on Wednesday accused China of “undermining” the balance of the South Pacific by signing a new police cooperation pact with the Solomon Islands. Anthony Albanese and Chris Hipkins said that the agreement, signed at the beginning of the month between Beijing and Honiara and similar to the one that the Solomon Islands...

French president Emmanuel Macron has denounced “new imperialism” in the Pacific during a landmark visit to the region, warning of a threat to the sovereignty of smaller states. “There is in the Indo-Pacific and particularly in Oceania new imperialism appearing, and a power logic that is threatening the sovereignty of several states – the smallest, often the most fragile,” he...

French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Port Vila last night, just three days before Vanuatu’s 43rd Independence Anniversary. President Macron received a grand and gracious welcome at the airport where he was warmly greeted by a delegation led by the Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jotham Napat, Malvatumauri and Vaturisu Councils of Chiefs, and Commissioner of...

Jim Skea of the United Kingdom is the newly elected Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). With nearly forty years of climate science experience and expertise, Jim Skea will lead the IPCC through its seventh assessment cycle. Skea was elected by 90 votes to 69 in a run-off with Thelma Krug. “Climate change is an existential threat to...

U.S Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland wrapped a weeklong trip to the Pacific Islands today, including visits to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia. Secretary Haaland led the U.S delegation for the inauguration of the 10th President of the Federated States of Micronesia, Wesley W. Simina. Vice President Aaron Palik...

Pacific health researchers are starting clinical trials in early 2024 to explore kava as an alternate treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The study is undertaken by researchers from University of Waikato, New Zealand on how kava use in the traditional kava setting could facilitate trauma therapy. Its co-lead and Pacific health researcher Dr Apo Aporosa told NutraIngredients-Asia that the study...

As tensions grow over security in the Indo-Pacific region amid an increasingly assertive China, Tonga and the United States agreed that working together, guided by strategies such as the Pacific 2050 Strategy, would be key to ensuring that – the Pacific remain a region of peace, security, and prosperity, says Tongan Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni. PM Sovaleni made the statement...

French President Emmanuel Macron warned Wednesday that separatism could lead to violence in the Pacific territory of New Caledonia, as he urged the pro-independence camp to accept a string of votes to stay part of France. On a landmark visit following three referendums that have rejected secession, Macron insisted the archipelago's future was within France. “Taking refuge in separatism actually means...

Lloyd Austin’s arrival in Papua New Guinea on Wednesday marked the first time that an American Defence Secretary has visited the island nation reflecting its growing strategic importance as the U.S tries to rein in China’s growing influence in the South Pacific. That competition with China has escalated American efforts to increase security cooperation with Papua New Guinea (PNG) as...

A planned missile defence system on the island of Guam could turn the U.S Pacific territory into a “target,” local residents have said, as opposition to the plans grow. The Pentagon plans to invest US$1.5bn in a 360-degree, air and missile defence architecture on Guam. It aims to complete the system by 2027. In January, the Missile Defence Agency (MDA), a...