PINA

United States and Marshall Islands leaders said after completing the first round of talks last week that they hope to complete negotiations to renew provisions of an economic and security treaty by the end of this year. Washington sees extension of funding packages under compacts of free association with the Marshall Islands and neighbors Federated States of Micronesia and Palau...

The meeting of Trade Ministers at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Geneva has reached an agreement on prohibiting some fisheries subsidies, which however will negatively impact developing island nations in the Pacific. After long hours of negotiations, a draft agreement- a truncated version of previous texts, circulated to ministers this morning was accepted and negotiations on the issue will...

Following 21 years of negotiations, the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies has been reached and endorsed by the World Trade Organisation 12th Ministerial Conference. Fiji being the Pacific Trade Ministers Chair led the final green room negotiations to get the Agreement over the line. Minister for Commerce and Trade, Faiyaz Koya, led the powerful 62 countries of the African, Caribbean and Pacific...

In an unprecedented result, French Polynesia's three seats in the French National Assembly have been won by the candidates of the pro-independence Tavini Huiraatira Party. Among the three is Tematai Le Gayic, who as a 21-year-old has become the youngest person to be elected to the French legislature. Provisional results show he narrowly defeated Nicole Bouteau of the ruling Tapura Huiraatira...

The New Zealand Government quietly dumped a $500m (US$315 million) climate change plan for the sinking Pacific island nation of Kiribati - after spending millions of dollars on consultants and reports. Half of the atoll’s 110,000 inhabitants live on the crowded capital island of Tarawa, which is increasingly vulnerable to flooding and storm surges. Its sea levels are predicted to...

Pacific security issues can and should be dealt with by regional nations, Samoan Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata'afa said on Friday, while adding that China's size made it an attractive economic partner. China's growing influence in the Pacific and the potential for militarisation in its small island nations has fanned concerns among neighbours Australia and New Zealand as well as...

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said she had a “constructive” and “wide-ranging” discussion with Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, which included addressing concerns over a recent bilateral security agreement between the Pacific Island nation and China. “Australia's view does remain that the Pacific family should remain responsible for our security - and the Pacific family is more than capable of...

World Trade Organisation(WTO) members successfully concluded the 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) in Geneva on 17 June, securing multilaterally negotiated outcomes on a series of key trade initiatives. The “Geneva Package” confirms the historical importance of the multilateral trading system and underlines the important role of the WTO in addressing the world’s most pressing issues, especially at a time when global...

After a five-year ban on the harvesting, trade, and consumption of beche de mer to allow populations to recover, the Fijian government are introducing a new management model for the species that sustainably supports the livelihoods of the communities that rely on this important marine resource. “We instituted the ban to preserve our people’s long-term food security and socioeconomic wellbeing....

By Nic Maclellan Pacific delegates will play a key role at a major nuclear disarmament conference this week in Austria, as governments discuss the humanitarian impacts of nuclear weapons and implementation of the new Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). Over the last year, Kiribati Ambassador to the United Nations, Teburoro Tito, has played a central role in...