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- President Yoon Suk Yeol Yoon launched his strategy last year, pledging to foster a ‘free, peaceful and prosperous’ region amid concerns about China
- Cook Islands’ PM Mark Brown, said challenges facing the region were ‘vast and complex’ and talks would cover topics such as disaster risk and ocean governance
US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral John Aquilino tells New York forum he is ‘ready and willing’ to meet counterparts.
Narendra Modi says India will be a reliable partner, as New Delhi banks on goodwill from historical links with Pacific nations to make further inroads into the region.
Washington plans new embassies as island nations become key arena for competition, while Beijing faces hurdles in building trust and people-to-people ties, according to observers.
The pact comes as the US and its allies try to deter Pacific island nations from forming security ties with China.
A US presidential envoy said the Palau agreement would be signed in Papua New Guinea on Monday, while the Micronesia pact would be signed on Tuesday.
Most governments say they won’t be forced to pick a side as Washington and Beijing provide millions in aid and loans as they try to win regional influence.
Prime Minister James Marape said two agreements focusing on defence cooperation and maritime surveillance had been agreed with Washington and would be signed in the near future.
Jake Sullivan describes American president’s G7 attendance as ‘critical’ and notes plan to put visit with Australian prime minister ‘back on the books’.
US president’s truncated visit is an ‘unwelcome reminder’ that Washington’s pledges to the region are at the mercy of ‘increasingly fickle politics on the US home front’.
The US president must navigate a delicate balance between countering China’s economic coercion and sowing further division, observers say.
The 80-year-old will visit a city that the US destroyed with a nuclear bomb and spend an awful lot of time with India’s prime minister as he looks to demonstrate that he still has enough in the tank to handle the gruelling pace of the presidency.
Some ministers in the region back an immediate halt to fighting in Ukraine, countering EU position that such a move would solidify Russian gains.
PNG Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko’s daughter had filmed her ‘elite’ visit to luxury stores in Singapore and her meal in the ‘stunning’ first-class lounge, on their way to London for the coronation.
National security at stake amid Beijing’s ‘economic coercion’ in region, says US special presidential envoy Joseph Yun.
Symbolic trip is a nod to Papua New Guinea’s rapidly growing strategic importance, as the United States and its allies tussle with China for influence across the Asia-Pacific.
A batch of cough syrup – manufactured by QP Pharmachem, based in Punjab and exported to the Marshall Islands and Micronesia – was contaminated with unacceptable amounts of ingredients toxic to humans.
US President Joe Biden has pledged generous funding for tuna treaty and other regional initiatives in a bid to offset China’s growing influence, but Republicans seek cuts in foreign aid.
The Cook Islands follows other Pacific Island nations in wiping colonial-era sodomy laws from the statutes, beginning with the Marshall Islands in 2005.
New Zealand – a key actor in promoting the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons – wishes to contribute to the development of cutting-edge military technologies in Aukus’ non-nuclear pillar.
Tokyo’s decision to use international aid for military purposes is a ‘paradigm shift’ but won’t lead to an arms race in Asia, analysts say.
Ma Zhaoxu’s trip is expected to help stabilise Beijing’s ties with Canberra with a new round of political consultations.
Susi Air pilot Phillip Mehrtens was abducted by the West Papua Liberation Army in the highlands of Nduga two months ago after a routine flight to the area.
White House envoy Kurt Campbell, who met Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, said the US has been the subject of some disinformation in the Pacific nation.
Yoshimasa Hayashi’s trip is the first time a Japanese FM has headed to the island state, which last year signed a security pact with Beijing.
Micronesia’s president said the Pacific nation, which currently recognises Beijing, ‘can and will receive’ US$50 million over a three-year period ‘if and when we establish diplomatic relations with Taiwan’.
Incoming head of the Pacific Islands Forum once demanded that China show respect, and now he is poised to occupy a position from which to demand it, as cooperation in the region is of great importance for Beijing.
Outgoing leader David Panuelo detailed allegations of Chinese espionage, coercion of government officials and ‘direct threats’ against his personal safety.
