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Pacific nations
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Pacific nations

Pacific nations
Pacific nations
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Pacific nations. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
A sea-level rise and erosion barrier in Kiribati. Territory loss for low-lying nations from rising sea levels could raise fundamental questions over both statehood and maritime boundaries. Photo: Getty Images
South China Sea

Why China is weighing into the debate on how to respond to shrinking coastlines

Rising sea levels are not an existential threat to China, but their impact on international law could have a knock-on effect in other areas.

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United States

Opinion | Pacific island states are trapped in Cold War 2.0

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Taiwan

Taipei donates coastguard vessel to Manila amid South China Sea tensions

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US-China relations

US port pledge ups China rivalry in Pacific but island nations stick to own course

Washington commits millions of dollars at last week’s regional leaders’ forum in Palau, but experts say it will not be that simple.

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Member nations’ flags fly outside the Pacific Islands Forum leaders’ meeting in Koror, Palau, on September 3. Photo: Kyodo
Australia

Australia nears treaty with Solomon Islands in bid to limit China’s influence

Canberra has pledged US$708 million in extra funding for Honiara as part of the deal expected to be signed in the coming weeks.

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United Nations

France digs in on Pacific islands claim as Vanuatu turns to World Court

Vanuatu says it will seek UN General Assembly opinion if Paris does not accept the ICJ’s jurisdiction on the disputed outcrops.

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New Zealand

Exclusive | New Zealand ‘must never be seen as a proxy’, former PM Helen Clark warns

Calling the US Pacific strategy a ‘game of bluff’, Clark urges Wellington to defend its independent foreign policy tradition.

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New Zealand’s former prime minister Helen Clark. Photo: AFP
New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon (right) holds a meeting with Fijian counterpart Sitiveni Rabuka on the sidelines of the Pacific Islands Forum summit in the Solomon Islands last year. Photo: AFP
China-Australia relations

In Focus | How Pacific nations walk a tightrope between Western security and Chinese trade

As Australia expands defence pacts in the region, Beijing courts local communities with ‘small and beautiful’ aid.

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New Zealand

Cook Islands PM re-elected despite row with New Zealand over China ties

The result shows that local voters are not as concerned about geopolitical issues as claimed in earlier reports, analysts say.

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Environment

Opinion | The race for critical minerals is clearing the path for deep-sea mining

Corporate pressure and US-China competition are stalling global efforts to set environmental safeguards for seabed mining.

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An aerial view of the coastline in Port Vila, Vanuatu, in December 2019. The Vanuatu government has called for a mechanism to assess gaps in scientific knowledge about deep-sea mining and progress towards filling them. Photo: Getty Images
Solomon Islands

Solomon port plans mark US reset of ‘anaemic’ Pacific ties

The move aims to ensure Honiara partners with Western allies in sectors with security implications, analysts say.

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The port in Honiara, capital city of Solomon Islands in April 2024. Photo: AFP
New Zealand

New Zealand’s Pacific defence diplomacy shifts into overdrive

Wellington’s four-month diplomatic blitz aims to lock down regional allies as Washington’s commitment wavers.

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Defence

Letters | Missile test shows major-power rivalry is spilling into the Pacific

Readers discuss the fallout of China’s recent missile test, the massive protests in India sparked by exam irregularities, and dwindling sales at the Hong Kong Book Fair.

Mainland China

China’s missile test exposes lack of unity among Pacific island nations

While some Pacific Islands Forum members have criticised the test near Tuvalu, Papua New Guinea appears to have backtracked, analysts say.

A ballistic missile test launched from a Chinese nuclear-powered submarine in the South Pacific on July 6. Photo: Xinhua/AP
US-China relations

Top Chinese South Pacific security partner to let US patrol its waters

Agreement will allow US vessels to patrol with local police as Honiara expands maritime ties with Washington despite close Beijing links.

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Solomon Islands Prime Minister Matthew Wale has announced plans for a maritime agreement allowing the US Coast Guard to patrol the country’s waters alongside local police. Photo: EPA
Taiwan

Taiwan reviews PNG LNG imports after forced closure of economic office

The Pacific nation and Cambodia have both handed Beijing diplomatic wins by reiterating support for the one-China policy.

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New Zealand

Australia, Fiji and now New Zealand: a new Pacific alliance takes shape

Wellington’s bid to join the pact flags a hard-security pivot, but analysts ask if such treaties serve Pacific societies’ best interests.

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Solomon Islands

China sends a message to Pacific islands amid unease over missile test

Solomons prime minister has pledged to review China pact while advancing talks on a comprehensive treaty with Australia.

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi holds talks in Beijing on Tuesday with Rick Houenipwela, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of the Solomon Islands. Photo: Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs
New Zealand

New Zealand-India trade, defence pact celebrated despite criticism

Anti-immigration members of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s coalition and anti-Modi members of the Indian diaspora opposed the deal.

China's military weapons

Opinion | Panic over China’s missile test is born of Western bias

Every nuclear power routinely tests its arsenal. The outcry over Beijing’s launch reveals a glaring double standard.

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Australia

Australia, Fiji sign mutual defence pact to boost Pacific security

Australia has greatly upped its diplomatic efforts in the region following China’s secretive security deal with the Solomon Islands in 2022.

Prime ministers of Australia, Anthony Albanese (left), and Fiji, Sitiveni Rabuka, shake hands after signing a treaty in Suva on Monday. Photo: EPA
Vanuatu

Vanuatu bans ‘foreign’ military bases in new security pact with Australia

The treaty is the latest in a string of Pacific deals Australia has signed seeking to curb China’s expanding security influence.

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Vanuatu’s Prime Minister Jotham Napat (left) and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese present the signed Nakamal agreement at Parliament House in Canberra on Monday. Photo: EPA
Australia

Australia refuses release of climate fund reports for Pacific nation Tuvalu

The island relies on a trust fund exposed to fossil fuels to help pay for the cost of climate change, with Australia the biggest contributor.

Australia

China’s direct strike threat to Australia is ‘growing’, think tank report finds

A Lowy Institute report said the main threat to Australia was from Chinese missiles fired from ships, submarines and a new ballistic missile.

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China-Japan relations

Rising seas: Japan makes pitch to Pacific nations caught in US-China rivalry

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi tells summit that Tokyo is committed to helping regional partners strengthen ‘autonomy and resilience’.

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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (centre) poses with representatives from the region during the opening of the Island States Ocean Summit in Tokyo on Wednesday. Photo: AFP
US, Israel war on Iran

Pacific Islanders skip food, medicine amid global fuel shortage from Iran war

Pacific nations are the most reliant on diesel for power generation worldwide. They imported about 2.2 million tonnes of fuel in 2025.

Boats ply the waterway in Buka, Papua New Guinea. Many Pacific Island communities rely on boat transport for movement. Photo: AFP
My Life

Former Hong Kong rugby team captain reflects on the first Sevens tournament in 1976

The former England international rugby player tells Annemarie Evans about his turn as captain of the Hong Kong team at the inaugural Sevens tournament here in 1976.

Micronesia

Super Typhoon Sinlakua bears down on group of remote US islands in Pacific Ocean

Trump has approved emergency help for Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, where Sinlakua is expected to make landfall on Tuesday.

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