PINA

Timor-Leste independence hero Xanana Gusmao's party has won the parliamentary election but has fallen short of an outright majority. The opposition National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT) led with 41.6 per cent of the votes, while its main rival and incumbent coalition leader Fretilin got 25.7 percent, according to the electoral commission. The result of Sunday's election paves the way for...

Palau and the United States formally signed the Compact Review Agreement in Papua New Guinea this week, witnessed by President Surangel Whipps Jr and U.S Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Palau Chief Compact Negotiator Finance Minister Kaleb Udui Jr and U.S Special Envoy Joseph Yun signed the agreement. The signing followed the initialing ceremony held in Palau last week. Palau Chief...

Fiji's Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions, Lee Burney, has decided that there will be no reinstatement of charges against former military officer, Ratu Tevita Mara following a review of the matter. Ratu Tevita Mara was charged by the police for making seditious comments in 2011. A nolle prosequi (formal withdrawal of a charge by the State) was filed in court in...

The opening of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) Regional Office Tuesday is one of Post Fiji Pte Ltd.’s biggest achievements as it paves a way for advanced postal division in the Pacific. Deputy PM and Minister for Trade, SMEs and Communications, Manoa Kamikamica officiated at the signing ceremony and stated that with Fiji being the hub of the Pacific, hosting...

The United States aims to strengthen its partnership with the Pacific, particularly in key areas such as public health, climate crisis, economic growth, and other key regional priorities. This was revealed by the U.S Secretary of State Antony Blinken while addressing the Pacific leaders at Monday's U.S-Pacific Islands Dialogue in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. Secretary Blinken said the U.S has...

Former guerrilla fighter and independence hero Xanana Gusmao is in prime position to win Timor-Leste's parliamentary election, with more than half of the votes counted after Sunday's poll. South-east Asia's youngest nation went to the polls on Sunday, with analysts' predictions of a tight result largely coming to fruition. On Monday afternoon, Gusmao's party CNRT had polled just short of 40...

The United States is aware of the needs of its development partners in the Pacific and will set up embassies in all island nations, says secretary of state Antony Blinken. “Work is being done to ensure that the U.S is accessible to its partners in the Pacific,” Blinken said. “Having embassies in these countries will strengthen bilateral relations with the U.S.” He...

Papua New Guinea Monday initialed a defence cooperation agreement with the United States, amid protests against the signing by university students and Opposition MPs. The agreement was signed by PNG Defence Minister Win Daki and U.S secretary of state Antony Blinken. A statement by the U.S state department said the signing, when coming into force, “will serve as a foundational framework...

India plans on improving the health sectors of the 14 Pacific Island nations by setting up Jaipur foot camps, Prime Minister Narendra Modi says. He said Papua New Guinea would have its prosthetic limbs camp this year. Similar camp was set up in Fiji last year and more than 600 people were fitted with prosthetic limbs for free. Modi also announced a...

We, the Pacific Islands Forum, represented at this meeting by the governments of Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu, and the United States of America—meet on the occasion of the U.S.-Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Dialogue in Port Moresby,...