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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.
last updated:
24 August, 2024
Members of Australia’s federal police and other rescue workers stand by a collapsed building in Port Vila, Vanuatu. Photo: Australian Federal Police via AP
Earthquakes

Opinion | Why Vanuatu should expect more aftershocks – and maybe another earthquake

A powerful 7.3 magnitude earthquake struck off the west coast of Efate, the main island of Vanuatu, earlier this week.

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Australia

Australia strikes US$118 million policing deal with China-friendly Solomons

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Earthquakes

Vanuatu reeling after magnitude 7.4 earthquake

Vanuatu

Death toll from Vanuatu earthquake rises to 14, including 2 Chinese

An embassy official said the two Chinese victims were from Fujian province. More than 200 people were injured in the quake.

Rescuers inspect a collapsed building in Vanuatu’s capital Port Vila after a powerful earthquake hit the Pacific nation. Photo: Michael Thompson via AFP
Vanuatu

Buildings ‘pancaked’ in Vanuatu as 7.4 magnitude earthquake rocks Pacific nation

Footage posted on social media showed buckled windows and collapsed concrete pillars on a building hosting foreign missions in the capital.

Tourism

7 foreigners hospitalised after drinking cocktails at 5-star Fiji resort

Guests at the luxury Warwick Fiji resort suffered ‘nausea, vomiting and neurological symptoms’, Fiji’s health ministry said.

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Australia

Australia seals Papua New Guinea security deal with eye on China

The agreement comes just days after Canberra signed a similar treaty with the small Pacific nation of Nauru.

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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (right) shakes hands with Papua New Guinea’s leader James Marape during a press conference in Sydney on Thursday. Photo: AFP
Papua New Guinea

Rebel region vows to become Pacific’s newest nation by 2027

Bougainville, home to about 300,000 people, voted to secede from Papua New Guinea five years ago after a bloody decade-long war.

Australia

Australia signs security treaty with China-friendly Nauru

The treaty limits Nauru’s deal-making abilities. Last year, Beijing persuaded the Pacific microstate to sever diplomatic links with Taiwan.

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Tonga

Tonga’s prime minister abruptly quits amid Pacific power struggle

It was not immediately clear who was in line to replace Siaosi Sovaleni, who has butted heads with Tonga’s influential king.

Tonga’s Prime Minister Siaosi ‘Ofakivahafolau Sovaleni addresses the United Nations General Assembly in September. Photo: Reuters
New Zealand

China’s growing presence ‘worries me and it should’: New Zealand’s defence chief

New Zealand’s concerns come as the government plans to increase defence spending, eyeing Nato’s guidance.

Type 055, or Renhai-class, large destroyers of the People’s Liberation Army Navy. New Zealand’s defence chief described the vessels as China’s most capable warships. Photo: CCTV
US-China relations

Taiwan’s Lai arrives in Hawaii for 2-day US stop on way to South Pacific

The stop, and another planned in Guam, have drawn fierce criticism from Beijing.

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New Zealand

Tens of thousands of Maori, supporters march on New Zealand’s parliament

Protesters oppose a bill drafted by a minor coalition party that aims to redefine a founding treaty of the country dating back to 1840.

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Palau

Palau seeks US missile system citing ‘direct threat’ from China ICBM test

President Whipps said he and incoming US leader Trump are ‘very much in agreement’ regarding the Pacific island nation’s security.

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China test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile in September. Photo: PLA Army News and Communication Centre/AFP
Diplomacy

‘Why would you do that?’: Palau accuses China of ‘uninvited’ maritime intrusions

The Pacific nation of some 20,000 people is one of the few countries to extend diplomatic recognition to Taiwan.

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The Palauan archipelago – a string of limestone islands and coral atolls – lies about 800km east of the Philippines. Photo: Shutterstock
New Zealand

‘It was wrong’: New Zealand apologises to 200,000 victims of state, church abuse

Those exposed to ‘unimaginable’ abuse in state, foster and faith-based care over a 70-year period were disproportionately Maori.

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Australia

As Chinese banks circle, Australia pushes ANZ to stay in Pacific island nations

For years, Western banks have been closing branches throughout the South Pacific. State-owned Bank of China has shown it’s eager to step in.

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History

Commonwealth leaders: ‘time has come’ for slavery reparations discussion

Leaders said it was time to discuss whether Britain should commit to reparations for its role in the transatlantic slave trade.

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Malta’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Ian Borg (left), Samoa’s Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa (centre) and Commonwealth Secretary General Patricia Scotland attend the final press conference at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Apia, Samoa on Saturday. Photo: AFP
Kiribati

‘Not welcome’: China ally Kiribati criticises Chinese ICBM test

China conducted a rare launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile with a dummy warhead that landed in the Pacific Ocean late last month.

New Zealand

Fuel spill ‘highly probable’ after New Zealand navy ship sinks off Samoa

The ship, which was surveying a reef, is considered lost. The incident has sparked worries about the state of New Zealand’s ageing military hardware.

Samoa

75 on board New Zealand Navy ship safe after it sinks off Samoa

The vessel was carrying out a reef survey near the southern coast of Upolu when it ran aground.

A handout photo from the New Zealand Defence Force shows the Royal New Zealand Navy ship the HMNZS Manawanui (right) in front of HMNZS Otago during a training exercise. File photo: AFP
Indonesia

New Zealand pilot freed in Indonesia after 19-month hostage ordeal

Phillip Mehrtens was working for an Indonesian airline when he was taken by rebels in Papua last year.

New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens was released from captivity by rebels in Indonesia’s restive region of Papua and was in good health despite the 19-month-long ordeal. Photo: AFP
Pacific Islands Forum

Opinion | Why we must follow Pacific Islands’ lead on climate change

Pacific Islands nations show how cooperation can transcend national boundaries to address common challenges effectively. They need support.

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US-China relations

US official defends mix of diplomacy and competition with China in Indo-Pacific

Daniel Kritenbrink of State Department says dealing with Beijing in the region requires ‘intense’ statecraft and communications.

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War and conflict

‘Situation dire’: Papua New Guinea violence leaves up to 50 people dead

The fighting, which began days ago, has forced the nearby New Porgera gold mine to halt operations, and the government has declared an emergency.

The Porgera gold mine in the highlands of Papua New Guinea. Photo: Handout
China-Australia relations

China’s police chief urges ‘new chapter’ of Pacific Island security cooperation

The comments come after Australia – Beijing’s rival in a region it is eager to court – secures support for major Pacific policing initiative.

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China is willing to create a “more professional” law enforcement team to achieve “lasting security” in the Pacific Islands, says Chinese Public Security Minister Wang Xiaohong. Photo: Weibo
Singapore

Pope Francis lands in Singapore for final stop on 12-day Asia-Pacific tour

He has defied doubts about his health during a journey that has taken him from a Jakarta grand mosque to a remote jungle of Papua New Guinea.

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Australia

Papua New Guinea PM Marape bullish in face of fresh political peril

It marks the fifth challenge to Marape’s leadership over a Pacific nation wracked by violence, instability – and a geopolitical tug of war.

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