PINA

The UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Tuesday voiced deep concern over the escalation in the exchanges of fire across, and increasingly beyond, the Blue Line – the demarcation line separating Lebanese and Israeli armed forces. Briefing the Security Council in a closed-door meeting, Joanna Wronecka emphasised the need to restore calm, urging compliance with international humanitarian law to protect civilians. She...

Palau’s national congress, the Olbiil Era Kelulau (OEK), is considering two proposals to raise the minimum wage. The government has advocated for an increase for the past three years, recently granting a US$3,120 annual raise to public sector employees. Two bills are on the table: House Bill 11-49-5S, HD2, and a supplemental budget proposal submitted by President Surangel Whipps Jr on...

Records were once again broken for greenhouse gas levels, surface temperatures, ocean heat and acidification, sea level rise, ice cover and glacier retreat, a new global report issued by the UN weather agency (WMO) on Tuesday shows. Heatwaves, floods, droughts, wildfires and rapidly intensifying tropical cyclones caused misery and mayhem, upending everyday life for millions and inflicting many billions of...

Sexual harassment of women journalists continues to be a major problem in Fijian journalism and “the issues of power lie at the heart of this”, new research has revealed. The study published in Journalism Practice by researchers from the University of Vienna and the University of the South Pacific highlights there is a serious need to address the problem which...

Officials from Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Vanuatu have completed expert training to manage their sovereign debt using the Commonwealth Meridian system. The Commonwealth Secretariat partnered with the Government of Fiji to host a regional training workshop in Nadi from 28 February to 08 March 2024. The training was designed to equip officials from finance ministries...

France's national assembly has voted on postponing provincial elections in New Caledonia that are a prerequisite for constitutional reforms that are supposed to review the electoral system in the French overseas territory. On Monday – following the vote's validation by the Senate – members of the French parliament are now considering what will be a very brief legislation, that will...

U.S officials stressed Tuesday that newly-approved legislation providing billions of dollars in funding for three strategically important Pacific island nations is an important sign of American commitment, which comes amid warnings China is actively trying to pry them away from Washington’s sphere of influence. The renewal of funds for the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic...

Japan on Tuesday began its second ministerial-level defence meeting with Pacific island nations in Tokyo, aiming to counter China's expanding military clout and maritime assertiveness in the region. At the two-day talks through Wednesday, Japanese Defence Minister Minoru Kihara and his counterparts will reaffirm the importance of a free, open and sustainable maritime order based on the rule of law,...

Fiji's Military Chief of Staff Land Force Command, Colonel (Col) Viliame Draunibaka, officiated the launch of the new established unit under the Third Battalion of Fiji Infantry Regiment (3FIR), called the Rapid Respond Infantry Company Group (RRICG), Monday at the Queen Elizabeth Barracks (QEB), Nabua. This initiative is in line with the Commander of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces...

Bendigo has temporarily delayed its plan to pull out of Nauru and close the Pacific Island country's only bank after a Chinese state-owned bank signalled it might be willing to fill the void, setting alarm bells ringing in Canberra. Bendigo Bank announced late last year that it would quit the country by December 2024, saying it wanted to “reduce complexity...